Spheroid Stem Cell Treatment for Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) Shows Promise

In a small pilot study, researchers from North Carolina State University have demonstrated a rapid, simple way to generate large numbers of lung stem cells for use in disease treatment. This method of harvesting and growing a patient's own lung stem cells shows promise in mice for treating idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and could one day provide human IPF sufferers with an effective, less invasive method of treatment for their disease.

The idea of using the body's own cells to fight diseases is not new, but current methods of isolating stem cells from bone marrow, fat tissue or cord blood are time consuming, costly and often wasteful. "In current stem cell harvesting, just the process of sorting the stem cells can damage them, wasting not only the cells, but also time and money," says Ke Cheng, lead researcher on the project. "We wanted to see if we could take healthy stem cells from an organ while they were still in a supportive environment, recreate and enhance that environment outside the body to encourage stem cell reproduction, then reintroduce those cells into a damaged organ to treat disease." Cheng is an associate professor of regenerative medicine at NC State's College of Veterinary Medicine and the UNC-Chapel Hill/NC State joint department of biomedical engineering.

The image above are lung stem cells (colored red and green) residing in a cultured lung spheroid.

Stem Cell Recreates 3D Neural Structure of Brain's Cerebellum

Scientist have successfully coaxed undifferentiated stem cells to form functioning cerebellar neurons that mimiced the dorsal/ventral patterning and multi-layer structure found in the cerebellum.

The experiment conducted at the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology in Japan applied signaling molecules to 3D cultures of human embryonic stem cells which prompted the cells to form into cerebellar neurons. These neurons self-organized to form the proper dorsal/ventral patterning and multi-layer structure found in the natural developing cerebellum. The image above are that of mature Purkinje cells (a type of neuron) that was grown from Human Embryonic Stem Cells.

The researchers noted that the experiment may lead to technologies and other discoveries that will be useful for modeling cerebellar diseases such as spinocerebellar ataxia; a progressive, neurodegenerative,genetic disease that has no known treatment or cure.

Neurons are cells of the nervous system that transmits information and signals to and from the brain. They the main component of the nervous system which also includes the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral ganglia (relay points and intermediary connections between different neurological structures in the body). Neurons are not made or replaced after birth. Scientists are looking at stem cell technology to address medical conditions and disorders that are affected by neurons since stem cells can differentiate into neurons.

Stem cells, specifically human embryonic stem cells, are cells that can change itself into a higher form of cell, tissue, or organ.

Their findings are published in Cell Reports.

Stem Cells Help In Identifying New Treatments for Dementia

Researchers in Belgium are using induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology to create neurons that are targeted by dementia.

By studying these neurons, the scientists have found a defect that prevents normal neurodevelopment. Stem cells were taken from patients who has an inheritable type of dementia that is responsible for 50% of dementia cases for people below the age of 60.

Dementia is a neurological disorder that causes loss of brain function. Memory, language, behavior, judgement and how the patient thinks are affected by dementia. It is a serious loss of global cognitive ability in a previously unimpaired or normal person, beyond what might be expected from normal aging. It may be static dementia, the result of a unique global brain injury, or progressive dementia, resulting in long-term decline due to damage or disease in the body.

The most common type of dementia is Alzheimer's disease.

Usually associated with elderly patients, there are cases of dementia occurring to patients below the ages of 60/65.

The type of dementia that the Belgian scientists are studying is frontotemporal dementia. It is the result of damaged neurons in the frontal and temporal lobs which affects the patient's behavior, language, and emotions.

By reconstructing the damaged neurons using stem cells, the scientists identified the defective neuron pathway, the Wnt signalling pathway, that when genetically corrected and treated, restored the ability of the iPSCs to turn into cortical neurons.

This novel method may help scientist better understand the disease and create a cure or therapy for the disease.

Transforming Skin Cells To Insulin Producing Beta Cells To Treat Type 1 Diabetes

Credit: Catherine Twomey for The National Academies

Scientists have developed a technique that could replenish insulin producing beta cells using stem cell technology. They used skin cells and transformed them into cells that could secrete insulin. The transformed cells called PPLCs, can mimic early pancreas-like cells that can manufacture insulin.

Early testing shows that the technique is successful.

Type 1 diabetes is disease where the immune system of the body attacks and destroys beta cells in the pancreas. This results in the loss of insulin which is needed to control the blood sugar levels. If left untreated, high sugar levels can be fatal.

There is no cure for diabetes yet but it can be managed with regular glucose monitoring and insulin injections.

Because stem cells have the ability to transform into any type of cell in the body, scientists have high hopes that this may be the key to finding a cure for diabetes and other diseases. This latest discovery is a positive step in finding a permanent cure for type 1 diabetes.

Treating Baldness By Stimulating Human Hair Growth Through Stem Cell Research and Cloning

Spheres of cultured papillae cells from human hair follicles successfully produced new human hair when transplanted between the dermis and epidermis of human skin.
Credit: Claire Higgins/Christiano Lab at Columbia University Medical Center

Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers have devised a new method in curing baldness and hair loss. The method involves stem cell research, cloning and the use of Dermal papillae cells to encourage hair growth rather than transplanting hair follicles. This method is extremely effective since it does not require hair follicles which some people have a limited number.

Current popular methods in hair regeneration include transplanting human hair follicles one at a time from one area of the body to another, which is simply relocating hair from one area to another; no net gain of follicles. This technique is limited to those who have enough hair follicles to transplant. Even existing hair loss medication only slows down the process of loss or stimulate growth for existing hairs. The new method actually grows new follicles using the patients own cells.

Since this hair follicle neo-genesis method does not require patients to have a steady source of hair follicles, it is a suitable treatment for bald people as well as patients with scarring alopecia, and hair loss due to burns. It encourages hair growth by cloning and using cultured human dermal papillae cells. These cells are crucial in hair formation, growth and cycling. They bring nutrients and oxygen to the lower layers of epidermal cells which is used by the hair follicles.

Slowing Down Aging Process Through Hematopoietic Stem Cells and Molecular Protein Wnt5a

Human Stem Cell

Scientists are studying a signalling pathway that links hematopoietic stem cells and the Wnt5A protein that can slow or even reverse aging. They noted that the WNT pathway that signals the production of Wnt5a leads to the activation of another protein called Cdc42 which results in stem cell aging. By suppressing the pathway, stem cells are rejuvenated and functionally acts younger.

Stem cells are cells in the body that can transform into other higher types of cells, tissue, or even organs. The stem cell observed in this study are hematopoietic stem cells (HSC). HSCs can be found in the bone marrow and also in the umbilical cord blood, embryo or peripheral blood in the human body. They can transform into many different types of blood cells such as erythrocytes, basophils, neutrophils and B-lymphocytes.

By suppressing the Cdc42 protein through the molecular signalling pathway, HSC starts to function younger which can lead to therapies that will boost their immune systems, fight illnesses and enhance overall vitality especially for the elderly.

Cardiac Stem Cell Therapy For Heart Failure Researched

Researchers are looking into a non-invasive treatment of heart failure using cardiac stem cells or heart stem cells.

In late 2011, researchers discovered a source of stem cells located in the heart. These cardiac stem cells can form into different types of heart cells including muscle, bone, neural and heart cells.

Located near the blood vessels, these heart stem cells can be developed into regenerative therapies aimed to enhance tissue repair in the heart. A damaged heart has difficulty repairing itself well because of the incredibly hostile environment and wide-scale loss of cells, including stem cells, after a heart attack.

The use of heart stem cells in treatment has many benefits including less invasive treatments since cardiac stem cells naturally goes to the heart when injected or inserted into the body. It can also be a preventive treatment to patients who are at risk of heart failure.

For the past few years, medical science have been looking into stem cells as treatment for numerous diseases and conditions. Stem cells have the natural ability to transform or differentiate into other types of tissues, cells, and organs.

Stem Cell Production Through Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer Ushers In Era of Personalized Medicine

The first step during SCNT is enucleation or removal of nuclear genetic material (chromosomal) from a human egg. An egg is positioned with holding pipette (on the left) and egg's chromosomes are visualized under polarized microscope. A hole is made in the egg's shell (zone pellucida) using a laser and a smaller pipette (on the right) is inserted through the opening. The chromosomes then sucked in inside the pipette and slowly removed from the egg.
Credit: Cell, Tachibana et al.

A technique used by scientists have, for the first time, produced human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) that will open up developments in personalized medicine and treatments.

The scientists used a process known as Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT) to produce human embryonic stem cells. Stem cell study is widely known as the next step in medical technology. Stem cells are specialized cells that can transform itself into a higher form of cell, tissue, or organ.

Because of this capability, stem cells can be used to repair damages or "grow" new tissues or organs for replacement. With the discovery of this new process, repairing or replacing damaged cells, tissues, or organs would be safer since these would be genetically identical and avoid rejection.

It also ushers in the age of personalized medicine since the treatments would be sourced from the patients themselves. Human embryonic stem cells are regarded as the top level form of stem cells since they can differentiate into any kind of tissue in the body.

Stem cell research have opened up discoveries such as optic nerve repair, heart tissue replacement, diabetes treatments, and even spinal cord repair.

Stem Cells Transformed Into Brain Neurons For the First Time

Stem cell research and development have grown tremendously over the past few years. Stem cell technology have opened up novel therapies against complicated neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease and Parkinson's Disease. Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have, for the first time, used human embryonic stem cells to create new neurons in the brain that can help it regain memory and cognitive functions.

Stem cells are special type of cells that can transform itself into a higher form of cell, tissue, or organ. Each biological system or organ has its own specialized stem cell that can transform into a tissue within that system (a heart stem cell can differentiate into a heart tissue). But human embryonic stem cells are a higher form of stem cells in that it can differentiate into any other type of cell; a characteristic called pluripotency.

This pluripotency is what drives stem cell research as it can be used to treat conditions such as Alzheimer's where brain cells are slowly being destroyed. Neurons behave different from other types of cells in that they cannot replicate or grow back if damaged. Using stem cells to differentiate into neurons mean that the brain can be treated and possibly healed.

Cell Therapy Ushers In Future Of Medical Technology

For the past few years, medical science has grown leaps and bounds in the development of treatments and therapies based on living cells. Cell therapy has entered mainstream medical studies with living cell based technologies such as stem cell therapy, bionanotechnology, and probiotics.

For years, common medical treatments are based on medications that are drived from chemicals and proteins. These are targeted to react on specific biological tissues, organs, and functions. But with the advent of cell therapy, of which stem cell therapy is the most known, treatments are now based on living cells.

Complex diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and neurological disorders are fast benefiting from cell therapy. Researchers are now finding novel techniques using cells to treat and manage these diseases.

Traditional drug based medication are limited to the functions it can perform in the body. Cells are more adaptable and can carry out more functions in the body. It can also can vary their responses to better suit physiologic conditions.

Stem Cell May Repair Damage or Loss of Neurons in The Enteric Nervous System

The Enteric Nervous System is a collection of nerve cells (neurons) in the gut from the esophagus to the rectum. It is known as the brain of the gut. It is autonomous to the central nervous system and functions independently from it.

Proper function of the digestive system requires coordinated contraction of the muscle in the wall of the intestinal tract, regulated by the enteric nervous system. Damage or loss of these neurons can result in intestinal motility disorders, such as Hirschsprung's disease, for which there is a dearth of effective treatments.

Experiment Shows Stem Cell Therapy Improves Stroke Recovery

Credit: Catherine Twomey for The National Academies

A recent stem cell experiment in stem cell treatment showed fast and improved functional recovery after a stroke within 24 hours.

Stem cells are cells that can differentiate to other type of cells, usually a higher class such as tissues and organs. Various body systems generate different kind of stem cells. Blood stem cells which are used to generate red blood cells come from the bone marrow.

Because of the unique property of stem cells, medical researchers are constantly finding ways to use stem cells in the treatment of difficult diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease, diabetes, cancer, and for the treatment and recovery of stroke patients.

Neurobiologists Transform Projection Neuron To Motor Neuron Inside Brain Through Direct Lineage Reprogramming

Neurobiologists have converted a brain neuron from one type to another. By successfully transforming a projection neuron to a motor neuron, their research can open up positive developments in the treatment and cure for neurological diseases such as ALS.

Neurons are cells that transmits information to and from the brain. They are the main component of the nervous system which includes the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral ganglia (relay points and intermediary connections between different neurological structures in the body).

There are about 80 to 100 billion neurons in the human brain. These are interconnected to each other through synapses in which there are about 100 trillion. The neural network transmits information through electrical and chemical signals.

No new neurons are made during one's life. Because of that, the brain has the most number of neurons during the last trimester as a fetus. From there, the number of neurons in the brain stay the same all throughout one's life.

Neurons need a lot of the body's resources to perform efficiently. The metabolic requirements for these require about 15% of the output of the heart (cardiac output), 20% of the body's oxygen consumption, and 25% of the body's glucose utilization. The brain only takes energy from glucose.

There are different types of neurons, each with a specialized function. Sensory neurons are responsible for sound, touch, sight, and other stimuli corresponding to the sensory organs. Motor neurons use signals from the brain and spinal cord to move and contract muscles and organs. There are also interneurons that connect neurons to other nearby neurons within the network. Another type of interneuron is the projection neuron that connects to far more distant neurons within the neural network.

Neurons do not undergo cell division. Most neurons are generated by special types of stem cells. Astrocytes, a type of glial cell, have also been observed to turn into neurons by virtue of the stem cell characteristic pluripotency.

Researchers Discover Bacteria That Can Transform Regular Cells Into Stem Cells

Stem cells (green) carrying bacteria differentiate into skeletal muscles, passively transmitting the infection to muscles.
Credit: Dr Toshihiro Masaki, MRC Centre for Regenerative Medicine, The University of Edinburgh

Researchers discover that bacteria can transform regular stem cells into stem cells. This discovery can lead to better stem cell treatments in the future.

Pluripotent Stem Cells are being considered the next best miracle cure for most diseases. Its pluripotency is what makes these cells special when it comes to medical science. Pluripotency is the ability to change into any other type of cell or tissue. This process is called differentiation.

There are different kinds of stem cells. There are blood stem cells, cardiac stem cells, brain stem cells and others. These can only differentiate into a specific cell or tissue. Only embryonic stem cells are pluripotent and can differentiate into any other cell except into another embryo.

Stem cell research hit a snag when President Bush vetoed the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2005 allowing the federal funding of embryonic stem cells because of moral reasons. Scientists were permitted to use existing stem cell lines harvested before the bill was vetoed.

In 2007, Shinya Yamanaka and his team at Kyoto University successfully transformed a non-pluripotent cell into a pluripotent stem cell without using embryonic stem cells. This was done by inducing specific genes within the cells to revert back to being pluripotent again. Yamanaka and fellow stem cell researcher John Gurdon were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "for the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent."

Currently, there are four types of pluripotent stem cells:

• Embryonic Stem Cell
• Nuclear Transplant Stem Cell
• Parthenote Stem Cell
• Induced Stem Cell

The first three types require a fertilized egg cell to form.

Scientists are looking into stem cells as treatment for incurable diseases such as diabetes, Alzheimer's Disease, and cancer.

Creating New Beta Cells: Stem Cell Advances For Diabetes Treatment

The islets of Langerhans are responsible for the endocrine function of the pancreas. Each islet contains beta, alpha, and delta cells that are responsible for the secretion of pancreatic hormones. Beta cells secrete insulin, a well-characterized hormone that plays an important role in regulating glucose metabolism.

Stem cell treatment for diabetes is slowly progressing as scientists study the process of regenerating insulin producing beta cells from stem cells.

Diabetes is a disease where production of insulin by the, the hormone that regulates blood sugar levels, is either not enough or not even produced.

Insulin is created in the pancreas, as part of the body's endocrine system. Within the pancreas, in a region called the islets of Langerhans are cells called Beta cells. These beta cells are the cells responsible for the actual production and secretion of insulin.

Diabetes occurs when these beta cells stop producing insulin or does not produce enough. The number of beta cells in the body are kept in balance within the pancreas. Studies have shown that obese people who have not contracted diabetes have a higher amount of beta cells than obese diabetics.

Stem Cells

Stem cells are special cells that can differentiate (transform) into a higher or specialized type of cell. The body has different types of stem cells such as blood stem cells, heart stem cells, and even brain stem cells. These cells can only differentiate into cells specific to the organ they are associated with.

There are also pluripotent stem cells that can differentiate into any type of cell. These are embryonic stem cells. But because embryonic stem cells are harvested from living embryos, some sectors consider it a moral issue.

Advances in medical technology and research have allowed scientists to induce other cells to become pluripotent. This allows the production of pluripotent stem cells without using an embryo.

Stem Cell Treatment For Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS) Being Researched

A promising study on stem cell transplantation to treat Lou Gehrig's Disease will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 65th Annual Meeting.

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease is a neurological disease that affects voluntary muscle movement.

When a person wants to move a part of the body, like the hand, the signal first starts in the brain (the motor cortex), travels through the central nervous system (the spine) and to the peripheral nervous system (the nerves connecting to the particular muscle).

In ALS, the two systems, The central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS) start to deteriorate. There is nothing wrong with the muscle but because the nerve connection is lost, the muscle starts to shrivel up and dies. In advance stages of the disease, the ability to speak is also affected.

ALS is not as common as other neurological diseases like Parkinson's Disease or Alzheimer's Disease. In the United States, 5,600 each year gets diagnosed with ALS and there are around 30,000 Americans living with the disease at any given time.

Although muscle twitches (involuntary small movement of muscles) is a symptom of ALS, these twitches are a common occurrence due to an overactive nerve cell. It doesn't necessarily mean that one has ALS because of it. Difficulty chewing or swallowing, speaking problems, and muscle weakness and stiffness are additional symptoms.

There is no definitive test to diagnose the disease. Instead, physical examinations, blood tests, MRI imaging, and electrical study of nerves and muscles are used to detect the disease.

There is no cure for ALS.

Cancer Stem Cells From Kidney Tumors Promises New Therapy In Treating The Disease

Cancer stem cells isolated from kidney tumors may give rise to new and effective treatments in treating aggressive forms of the disease.

Stem cell technology has been gaining wide attention because of its potential to treat diseases and conditions that with conventional methods are difficult even impossible. This technology is centered on embryonic and pluripotent stem cells. These are cells that have the capability to differentiate (transform) into various other cells and even organs.

But aside from these type of stem cells, there are other kinds of stem cells around.

There are blood stem cells (hematopoietic stem cells) that resupplies blood cells. There are also heart stem cells recently discovered that are responsible for heart tissues. Even the skin has stem cells.

These stem cells are limited to the organ it is associated with. There are procedures that can transform them back to its pluripotent stage but that technology is still in its early stages.

Cancer Stem Cells

There are also cancer stem cells (CSC). These behave the same way as stem cells do but instead of building back healthy tissues, these are responsible for creating cancer tumors. They are tumor forming stem cells (tumorigenic).

CSCs may generate tumors through the stem cell processes of self-renewal and differentiation into multiple cell types. They are present in tumors and may cause a relapse in the disease and even be responsible for metastisis (growth and propagation of cancer tumors in other parts of the body).

Engineering Patient Specific Articular Cartilage Tissues With Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

Scientists used induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to produce and engineer cartilage that opens up new treatments and therapies for patients with damaged cartilage, cartilage injury, and osteoarthritis.

Since the introduction of stem cell technology, its manner of procurement has garnered much moral debate. Initially, stem cells are taken from human embryos about four or five days after fertilization.

Stem cells are pluripotent. This means that they have the ability to transform or differentiate into a higher form of cell, tissue or organ. It is this ability that scientists look to as the next evolution of medical science.

Nuclear Reprogramming And Its Role In Stem Cell Technology, Cell Pluripotency and DNA

British biologist, Sir John Betrand Gurdon, FRS, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent (transform into any other type of cell).

This process is known as nuclear reprogramming and is at the forefront of stem cell technology.

A mature cell already has an established identity. Nuclear reprogramming wipes this information and transforms it to another kind of cell. It can open up new treatments and therapies for diseases and even repair and replace damaged tissues and organs.

Scientists Speed Up and Increase Efficiency In Production of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

Induced pluripotent stem cells generated using a kinase inhibitor.
Credit: Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute

To understand stem cells, there are two terms that are important to understand; pluripotency and differentiation.

Differentiation is the process in which the cell can transform itself into a higher class or specialized type of cell.

Pluripotency in stem cell biology means that the cell can differentiate itself into three types of germ layers: the endoderm, the mesoderm, and the ectoderm. The term "germ layer" more or less refers to the tissue layer. A group of germ layers eventually form tissues and organs of the body.

These three germ layers a stem cell can differentiate into, form much of the human body's organs. The endoderm forms into the internal organs such as the lungs, stomach lining, and the intestinal tract. The Mesoderm forms muscle and bone groups while the ectoderm forms epidermal tissues and the nervous system.

Because the stem cell can differentiate into other type of cells, there is much focus on this field for medical research. Stem cell research can open up new and effective treatments for otherwise difficult conditions such as alzheimers, parkinsons, cardiovascular diseases, and even cancer.

Early in stem cell research, a primary source for these type of cells were embryonic stem cells. These cells came from human fertilized eggs that are about four to five days old. Because of the manner of this process, there are moral issues that were raised with regards to these type of cells.

A recent technology introduced another way to source stem cells. These are called induced pluripotent stem cells or iPSC. These are artificially produced stem cells from non-pluripotent cells. The process is done by inducing or activating dormant genes within the cell to activate its pluripotency.

Making it easier to make stem cells

The process researchers use to generate induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs)—a special type of stem cell that can be made in the lab from any type of adult cell—is time consuming and inefficient. To speed things up, researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) turned to kinase inhibitors. These chemical compounds block the activity of kinases, enzymes responsible for many aspects of cellular communication, survival, and growth. As they outline in a paper published September 25 in Nature Communications, the team found several kinase inhibitors that, when added to starter cells, help generate many more iPSCs than the standard method. This new capability will likely speed up research in many fields, better enabling scientists around the world to study human disease and develop new treatments.

"Generating iPSCs depends on the regulation of communication networks within cells," explained Tariq Rana, Ph.D., program director in Sanford-Burnham's Sanford Children's Health Research Center and senior author of the study. "So, when you start manipulating which genes are turned on or off in cells to create pluripotent stem cells, you are probably activating a large number of kinases. Since many of these active kinases are likely inhibiting the conversion to iPSCs, it made sense to us that adding inhibitors might lower the barrier."