by admin | Jan 7, 2018 | COPD, Stem Cell Research
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is one of a long list of diseases that may be impacted by stem cells. A number of studies have suggested that mesenchymal stem cells may protect against the lung damage associated with COPD, but they have not been able to explain how the cells may achieve such protection.
Understanding the mechanism by which stem cells offer therapeutic value is critical for developing effective therapies that can help patients. As such, researchers from London and Hong Kong undertook a collaborative study to investigate how stem cells may protect the lungs of those with COPD. Their results were recently published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
The researchers hypothesized that stem cells may work by reducing the damage that mitochondria endure in COPD. Mitochondria are the cell’s energy source and are damaged through a process known as oxidative stress, which occurs when the cells are exposed to free radicals. In COPD, when oxidative stress damages mitochondria, the lungs often become inflamed, resulting in the death of lung cells.
To test their hypothesis, the scientists looked at the effect of induced pluripotent stem cell-derived mesenchymal stem cells on airway smooth muscle cells. Consistent with their hypothesis, they found that the presence of the stem cells reduced mitochondrial damage caused by oxidative stress. The stem cells also reduced the amount of cellular death.
While more research is needed to determine how exactly stem cells can be used to treat patients with COPD, the finding that stem cells can prevent damage to lung tissue is promising. Now that researchers have also helped clarify how these cells are able to prevent such damage, they are equipped with information that could help them optimize any cell-based therapies that are developed for COPD.
by admin | Nov 28, 2017 | Studies, Stem Cell Research
A recent publication in BioMed Research International has reviewed the study on the potential benefits of Wharton’s jelly derived mesenchymal stem cells in treating a variety of diseases. According to the authors of the review, these stem cells can be collected during millions of births each year at the time of delivery. A huge advantage of this type of stem cell collection over other methods is that it is not associated with the adverse side effects associated with other collection methods, nor is it particularly invasive. Its collection is also highly efficient.
Other advantages of Wharton’s jelly derived mesenchymal stem cells are that collecting them does not raise ethical concerns and that the cells themselves proliferate rapidly. Some stem cells have a tendency to lead to tumors or are prone to cause immune reactions. Wharton’s jelly derived stem cells on the other hand appear to circumvent both of these problems, making them valuable for a variety of applications in medicine.
Mesenchymal stem cells, which are the basis for a number of stem cell therapies and the relevant research, may be limited in value when they have been collected from older patients. Some reasons for this limitation are disease, DNA damage, and oxidative stress.
The authors also provide information on the regulatory and logistics aspects to stem cells. They explain that quality management systems are already part of the stem cell therapy infrastructure, which ensures that Wharton’s jelly derived mesenchymal stem cells would be donated, processed, stored, and distributed with the same high standards that other stem cells undergo donation, processing, storage, and distribution. The same is also true, they say, for the procurement and testing of these stem cells. While there seem to be clear benefits of Wharton’s jelly derived stem cells, more research on the clinical applications of these cells will help researchers determine the overall value of these cells.
Learn more about the benefits of stem cell therapy here.
by admin | Nov 10, 2017 | Stem Cell Research
In recent years, research into how stem cells can be used to improve heart health has been growing. Stem cells appear to be particularly promising for helping to repair damage to the heart because stem cells can help to rebuild tissue that has been injured or destroyed.
As it becomes more and more clear that stem cells offer therapeutic options, it also becomes more important to understand how stem cells work so that therapies can be strategically developed and optimized. A recent study helped to clarify how certain stem cells can be mobilized.
The researchers hypothesized that hyperbaric oxygen would mobilize bone marrow-derived stem/progenitor cells through a nitric oxide-dependent mechanism. Nitric oxide is known to have a role in mobilizing bone marrow-derived stem/progenitor cells through the release of a cytokine. The researchers’ hypothesis stemmed from the fact that hyperbaric oxygen can activate the protein that makes nitric oxide.
Data from the study showed that hyperbaric oxygen did indeed mobilize bone marrow-derived stem/progenitor cells. They also found that the number of bone marrow-derived stem/progenitor cells in patients’ blood was higher during hyperbaric oxygen treatments. However, exposure to radiation limited the response to hyperbaric oxygen.
Interestingly, some of the researchers’ clinical data were inconsistent with the results of their basic science studies. Thus, further research is needed to fully understand the best ways to mobilize stem cells and improve their likelihood of being therapeutically valuable.
To learn more about Hyperbaric Oxygen therapy, click here.
by admin | Nov 1, 2017 | Studies, Stem Cell Research
Recent research has found that stem cells may offer a promising new solution for treating Achilles tendon ruptures. Conventional treatment options for Achilles tendon ruptures have significant limitations. Some treatments work only to combat the symptoms related to Achilles tendon ruptures but do not work to repair the damage. These options are also time-consuming and often ineffective. Surgical interventions, on the other hand, involve high degrees of risk related to complications due to things like infection and nerve damage.
Given the opportunity for stem cells to help repair tissue damage, physicians and researchers have begun to focus on how stem cells may be specifically applied to treat Achilles tendon ruptures. The current study assessed two different types of stem cells in Achilles tendon rupture repair. These cells, called bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells and tendon-derived stem cells, have advantages over other stem cell types in their potential to help with Achilles tendon rupture. For instance, both stem cell types proliferate quickly.
Because tendon-derived stem cells are specific to the tendon, the researchers hypothesized that these cells would be more effective in Achilles tendon rupture repair than bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells. To test their idea, they implanted the two stem cell types into ruptured Achilles tendons and look at the impact of each stem cell type.
The researchers found that both types of stem cells were effective in improving the potential for ruptured Achilles tendons to heal. Consistent with their hypothesis, however, they found that the tendon-derived stem cells were more effective than were the bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells. Further research will likely help the medical community understand how best to use stem cells to address issues like ruptured Achilles tendons.
To learn more about the benefits of stem cell therapy, click here.
by admin | Oct 20, 2017 | Stem Cell Research
Xiaodong Pang and colleagues have demonstrated the successful use of human umbilical cord tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells in the treatment of chronic discogenic low back pain. The study, published in Pain Physician, is the first study to addressing the potential of this particular treatment option for chronic discogenic low back pain.
Chronic discogenic low back pain is the leading cause of chronic low back pain, which leads to a significant amount of disability. This type of back pain does not currently have any highly successful treatment options. Generally, the pain is managed conservatively, and if all else fails, surgical fusion is undertaken. Neither of these options addresses the underlying cause of chronic discogenic low back pain and instead simply address the symptoms, offering ways to try to reverse those symptoms.
In this initial study conducted by Pang and colleagues, the researchers aimed to establish that human umbilical cord tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells could be both feasibly and safely used in humans to treat chronic discogenic low back pain. The study, conducted at a spine center in China, focused on two patients with chronic discogenic low back pain. Both patients underwent the transplantation of the stem cells, and their back pain symptoms and lumbar function were assessed both immediately after the transplants and again two years later.
The researchers found that both the pain and the function associated with the patients’ back conditions improved immediately after the stem cell transplants. In addition to demonstrating that this particular transplant procedure was feasible, the researchers also showed that it was safe, as neither patient suffered side effects.
There are a number of reasons for which human umbilical cord tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells may provide the benefits that these researchers observed. For instance, unlike other stem cell types, these cells have the ability to differentiate into a number of different types of cells. The results of other studies suggest that these stem cells may help with this lower back condition by altering cell activity such that less inflammation occurs.
Going forward, researchers will need to replicate the findings of this study to show that the positive effects of human umbilical cord tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells in chronic discogenic low back pain extends to the general patient population. Further, as the mechanism by which these cells may improve the condition is not clear, research that helps to elucidate the way these cells confer their benefits will also help in the development of relevant therapeutic interventions.
To learn more about stem cell treatments click here.
Reference
Pang, X, Yang, H, & Peng, B (2014). Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell transplantation for the treatment of chronic discogenic low back pain. Pain Physician. 17: E525-530.
by admin | Oct 16, 2017 | Stem Cell Research
In a study published in Cell Stem Cell, researchers helped to clarify the mechanism by which mesenchymal stem cells achieve their immunosuppressive effects. While immunosuppression is not always appealing, there are certain contexts in which suppressing the immune system is critical. These cases include patients with autoimmune disease, where their immune system begins attacking the body’s organs, as well as skin grafts, where the immune system’s reaction to new skin often leads to graft rejection.
Mesenchymal stem cells have been strategically chosen over other types of stem cells when their immunosuppressive properties are beneficial. Nonetheless, because the specific reasons that these cells lead to immunosuppression are unknown, researchers have begun to investigate potential ways that the immunosuppression occurs.
One critical factor that the researchers considered was that the immunosuppressive effects of mesenchymal stem cells may not be innate. Given that immunosuppression is not always observed when mesenchymal stem cells are employed, the researchers hypothesized that the immunosuppression may depend on the presence of other factors in combination with mesenchymal stem cells.
Nitric oxide was one factor of particular interest to the researchers because nitric oxide is known to suppress the immune system’s T cells. Nitric oxide easily diffuses across barriers and interacts with a number of important proteins, making it an attractive candidate for contributing to immunosuppression that is observed with the use of mesenchymal stem cells.
Consistent with their hypothesis, the researchers found that nitric oxide does mediate the immunosuppression achieved by mesenchymal stem cells and demonstrated a specific mechanism by which this mediation occurs. This new information improves our understanding of how mesenchymal stem cells work and will therefore also enhance our ability to strategically use these cells to achieve the therapeutic benefits for which we strive.
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