by admin | Jun 8, 2018 | Stem Cell Research
Neurodegenerative conditions are neurological disorders that are caused by dysfunctions in part of the brain or nervous system which result in physical or psychological symptoms. They include conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), and Multiple Sclerosis (MS), to name a few. In each of these conditions, certain areas of the brain or spinal cord become dysfunctional as nerve cells die. Stem cells have been considered as a potential source to help reverse or hold progression of symptoms. Research scientists have thoroughly reviewed the available scientific research on adipose (fat)-derived stem cells and have concluded that they show great promise in treating neurodegenerative conditions.
In an article from the Journal of Pharmacological Sciences, scientists explain that adipose-derived stem cells can play a unique and potentially beneficial role in many neurological conditions. For example, stem cells may be able to restore the learning and memory deficits that occur in Alzheimer’s disease by blocking or reducing the damage that occurs to the brain. Adipose-derived stem cells may be able to delay the progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig’s disease. In Huntington’s disease, a neurodegenerative condition that causes uncontrollable, dancelike movements, stem cells may be able to slow the rate at which nerve cells die in key areas of the brain. And for those with Parkinson’s disease, a neurological disease in which people have tremors, rigidity, and shuffling gait, stem cells show promise for relieving symptoms and slowing or halting the rate of progression.
The researchers also explored the possibility of adipose-derived stem cells treating other neurological conditions such as spinal cord injury and stroke. When people sustain damage to the spinal cord, one of the reasons that they cannot regain function is due to scar tissue forming at the site of injury. Adipose-derived stem cells may be able to block these scars, and potentially help nerve cell fibers regrow. During a stroke, there is a lack of blood flow to the brain causing blood cells to die. Adipose-derived stem cells may be able to reduce the amount of damage to brain tissue and allow patients to preserve more of their natural abilities.
In all of these cases, continued clinical trials are needed to demonstrate the positive effect of adipose-derived stem cells. Nonetheless, the scientific evidence is strong in supporting these treatments. As the authors of the review state, adipose-derived stem cells are “very likely to be a promising clinical option for the treatment of diverse neurological disorder patients.”
by admin | Jun 4, 2018 | Stem Cell Research
In order to tell other parts of the body how to react, cells must be able to communicate. For many years, scientists have known that cells do this through chemical secretion, which releases a message to other cells. It wasn’t until recently, however, that researchers discovered the ability to deliver these messages through extracellular vesicles.
In some cases, these extracellular vesicles bud directly from a cell membrane. In other instances, tinier vesicles are assembled inside the cell before being released through the membrane. These are called exosomes, and they carry sophisticated RNA.
What Do Exosomes Do?
Recent studies tell us that exosomes play a critical role in cell-to-cell communication. Exosomes formed by specific cells can perform multiple functions, including exerting positive effects on tissue regeneration. Yet, not all exosomes are good: viruses, too, rely on these cellular pathways to communicate and replicate. In other words, infected cells also use exosomes to progress diseases.
Exosomes & Their Potential Power
Most recently, research has confirmed that cellular communication via exosomes is the process through which infectious diseases like malaria progress. Traditionally, high levels of viruses or bacteria in the blood were needed for accurate disease detection. Now, however, researchers believe that monitoring changes in exosomes – which are always present in human plasma – could aid in the ability to diagnose submicroscopic infections.
Yet, the potential impact of exosomes on modern medicine extends far beyond diagnostics. Secreted exosomes derived from stem cells could hold serious therapeutic potential for many conditions. Using stem cells as a therapy for conditions such as liver disease, for instance, shows significant potential. Stem cell-secreted exosomes present a cell-free form of therapy.
Unlike their parent cells, the exosomes are smaller, less complex, and easier to produce and store. Researchers are also exploring the potential of stem cell-secreted exosomes for treating conditions like autoimmune uveitis, an inflammatory eye condition. Additionally, the process is being looked into as a cell-free therapy for organ repair. In conditions such as cardiovascular disease, damaged tissue is unable to repair itself. Exosomes derived from stem cells could aid in myocardial repair, according to recent research. They have also been recently implemented as a way to track the progression of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), including the way its patients respond to treatments.
Because exosome studies are still being performed, the full impact these powerful vesicles will have on medicine is still unknown. However, based on the sheer volume of exosome research currently being conducted, it’s clear that scientists believe they could hold the answers to some of our most pressing medical questions.
by admin | Jun 1, 2018 | Psoriasis, Stem Cell Research
Psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune disease that affects more than 7 million people in the United States. Psoriasis is well known to cause red, scaly plaques on the skin, mostly on the elbows, hands, and feet—so-called plaque psoriasis. The condition can be very difficult to treat and the treatments can be harsh and cause many side effects. Most people with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis experience considerable suffering as a result.
In a recent clinical experiment, researchers used a man’s own stem cells to successfully treat his plaque psoriasis. Surgeons removed a small amount of fat, similar to liposuction but on a much smaller scale. They then purified the sample and reinjected the adipose-derived stem cells and mesenchymal stem cells intravascularly. One month after receiving the adipose stem cell injection, the patient had substantially fewer psoriasis symptoms. Over that month, his psoriasis severity score went from a “very severe” score of 50.3 to a “none to mild” score of 0.3.
The patient in this study had struggled with psoriasis for over 20 years prior to treatment. He also reported having a poor quality of life over that time. One year after the single injection of stem cells, the patient still had no psoriasis plaques or symptoms and did not experience any serious adverse effects from the stem cell treatment. He was able to stop his other psoriasis medications. During and at the end of the study, the patient told researchers that his quality of life had substantially improved with stem cell infusion, and he was eager to continue treatments.
The results of this clinical experiment are very impressive and is an exciting development for further studies on adipose-derived stem cell research and treatment.
by admin | May 29, 2018 | Stem Cell Research
Despite innovation in healthcare and the progress we’ve made in medical interventions, there are several diseases and disorders for which there are not adequate treatments. Stem cells are becoming a more popular way of addressing these medical challenges that we have not yet overcome and offer a new way to address the biological mechanisms that underlie them. Where traditional pharmacotherapy has not seen successes, stem cells are showing increasing promise.
Mesenchymal stem cells, in particular, are preferred for certain types of these medical conditions because they confer several advantages over other types of stem cells. For instance, mesenchymal stem cells have a great ability to differentiate and develop into a number of different types of adult tissues. Their properties also make mesenchymal stem cells capable of fighting the inflammation that often occurs in these conditions and causes tissue damage. Similarly, mesenchymal stem cells have immunosuppressive effects that can prevent the immune system activity, including inflammation, that can destroy cells and damage tissue.
Many of the medical conditions that mesenchymal stem cells may help with are degenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, osteoarthritis, and stroke. Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder that is chronic and involves motor dysfunction. In this disease, there are underlying problems with the neurotransmitter system, the dopamine system. Stem cells offer a way to overcome the problems associated with dopamine cell loss and dopaminergic dysfunction. Osteoarthritis is also progressively degenerative but affects the joints. In osteoarthritis, the cartilage becomes damaged and destroyed. Strokes can affect a variety of specific tissues, depending on exactly where they occur but are associated with significant tissue damage. The associated functional problems may be able to be addressed with stem cells.
Exosomes are vesicles that are carried within biological fluids like the blood. They carry genetic material called microRNA that can affect the way genes are regulated. There is growing evidence that through their actions, exosomes may be able to enhance the therapeutic effects of mesenchymal stem cells. Further research will help to clarify both what mesenchymal stem cells can do for patients with degenerative diseases and also how they can work in complement with exosomes to achieve meaningful results for these patients.
by admin | May 10, 2018 | Stem Cell Research
A recent review in Biomedicine and Pharmacotherapy has provided a comprehensive view of for how different types of stem cells can be used to treat a variety of neurodegenerative disorders and what the science now tells us about why these particular therapies are showing promise for their ability to help patients suffering from diseases that do not have other effective treatment options.
The review covers 5 main types of stem cells: mesenchymal stem cells, embryonic stem cells, induced pluripotent stem cells, perinatal stem cells, and neural stem cells. Mesenchymal stem cells are adult stem cells that are often found in bone marrow and that can differentiate into a number of different cell types, including bone cells, cartilage cells, muscle cells, and fat cells. Embryonic stem cells, on the other hand, come from human embryos. Given that they come from undifferentiated inner mass cells, these cells are also able to differentiate into a wide array of cell types. Induced pluripotent stem cells derived from skin or blood cells that have been reprogrammed such that they are much like embryonic stem cells.
Perinatal stem cells refer to stem cells that have come from the umbilical cord, the placenta, or the amniotic fluid. While perinatal stem cells also have the potential to differentiate into many cell types, they are often touted as valuable cells because they are taken from tissue that would otherwise be discarded. This process for collecting perinatal stem cells has the benefit of avoiding any ethical concerns that may be raised about the harm or pain inflicted when stem cells are collected by other means. Neural stem cells, unlike the other stem cell types, tend to generate into cells of the nervous system, including neurons and glia.
In addition to the characteristics of these 5 stem cell types and the relative advantages and disadvantages of these cells in regenerative medicine, the authors of this review also cover the implications of cell-based therapies for 4 specific neurodegenerative diseases: Alzheimer’s disease, ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), Multiple Sclerosis (MS), and Parkinson’s disease. While the research is still relatively new, there is a lot of evidence to suggest that stem cells can help patients with neurodegenerative disease.
by admin | May 7, 2018 | ALS, Stem Cell Research
Stem cells are being increasingly used to create therapies to address diseases across a number of organs. Neurodegenerative disease is one category for which there has been an abundance of research into the potential of stem cells to slow symptom progression or reverse symptoms altogether. For some neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease, the approach for using stem cells is to create a therapy that enables the cells that are lost through the disease to be replaced by new cells. It is the hope of scientists and clinicians that this type cell replacement therapy will halt aspects of the disease that result from cell loss.
Recently, scientists published experimental results in PLoS One that demonstrate the potential of another type of stem cell approach. More specifically, these researchers showed that in the case of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), using stem cells to help create a protective environment for existing cells may have a positive impact on disease progression. The specific type of stem cells used in this experiment was the mesenchymal stem cell.
While cell replacement therapies often employ mesenchymal stem cells because of their ability to differentiate into many different cell types, the researchers in this study used them because of their promise for enhancing the health of a cell environment. Indeed, these cells are known to have immunomodulatory properties and to fight inflammation.
The researchers specifically looked at how mesenchymal stem cells could affect motor neurons and glia because these are the cell types that are implicated in ALS. What they found was that these stem cells were able to reduce apoptosis, a process whereby cells self-destruct as a result of cues in the environment that alert the cells to unhealthy conditions. Critically, the extent to which this type of cell destruction was minimized depended on the amount of mesenchymal stem cell that was present. In other words, with more stem cells came more protection.
Another important observation was that mesenchymal stem cells were associated with the expression of important growth factors that are known to support healthy environments and to reduce markers of inflammation, which tend to be associated with unhealthy environments.
Together, these results suggest that ALS could potentially be addressed with stem cells without the development of aggressive cell replacement therapies. Instead, stem cells could be used to create protective environments for neurons that are normally affected by the disease.
St. Petersburg, Florida
