Author Archives: Fredricko

San Diego’s Part In Autism History Cited In Book

Posted on by

Related To Story

John Donvan (l), Caren Zucker


POSTED: 6:42 pm PST February 15, 2012

UPDATED: 7:21 pm PST February 15, 2012

SAN DIEGO -- Most people are familiar with the character Raymond from the hit movie "Rain Man," but most would not know actor Dustin Hoffman based part of his Oscar-winning portrayal of Raymond on San Diego artist Mark Rimland. "He had lunch with Dustin Hoffman back during the making of the film," explained ABC News correspondent John Donvan.Rimland is one of many fascinating figures Donvan and news producer Caren Zucker hope will help change attitudes in their book about autism.Donvan's brother-in-law and Zucker's son have autism. Donvan's role as an ABC News correspondent and Zucker's position as a news producer helped them glean autism stories over the years. However, the book is not about work, it's a labor of love."Nobody knows the back story so we decided to tell that story," said Donvan. "San Diego comes up in the history of autism a lot of times."For example, in the 1960s San Diegan Bernard Rimland, Mark's father, turned the autism world on its ear with research that showed bad mothers were not the cause of autism."That was absolutely, absolutely considered the official version of what was the cause of autism," according to Donvan.Zucker said, "He was every family's hero really because he just sort of said this is, you know, baloney."Their book will introduce readers to the first person diagnosed with autism, Donald Triplett. Triplett is known as "Case One" and is now in his 70s.Donvan and Zucker said because Triplett's Mississippi community accepted him, he thrived. That is what they are hoping their book will inspire."Whatever it takes to let acceptance happen, it can make an enormous impact on the life of somebody with autism," said Donvan."The awareness just makes people much more accepting," added Zucker.Donvan and Zucker were invited to speak Wednesday night by the Stein Education Center, which grew out of the first children's autism program in San Diego.The book is expected to be out in 2013.For more information on the book, visit VistaHill.org.

Copyright 2012 by 10News.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The following are comments from our users. Opinions expressed are neither created nor endorsed by 10News.com. By posting a comment you agree to accept our Terms of Use. Comments are moderated by the community. To report an offensive or otherwise inappropriate comment, click the "Flag" link that appears beneath that comment. Comments that are flagged by a set number of users will be automatically removed.

Continue reading here:
San Diego's Part In Autism History Cited In Book

Autism affects motor skills, study indicates

Posted on by

Public release date: 15-Feb-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Beth Miller
millerbe@wustl.edu
314-286-0119
Washington University School of Medicine

Children with autism often have problems developing motor skills, such as running, throwing a ball or even learning how to write. But scientists have not known whether those difficulties run in families or are linked to autism. New research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis points to autism as the culprit.

Their findings were reported in the journal Autism.

"From our results, it looks like motor impairments may be part of the autism diagnosis, rather than a trait genetically carried in the family," says lead author Claudia List Hilton, PhD, assistant professor in occupational therapy and an instructor in psychiatry. "That suggests that motor impairments are a core characteristic of the diagnosis."

The researchers studied 144 children from 67 families in which at least one child had a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder as well as at least one biological sibling in the same age group. Of the children families, there were 29 in which two had an autism spectrum disorder, including six identical twins; and 48 in which only one child had an autism spectrum disorder.

The children were observed performing a range of motor skills, including placing pegs in a pegboard, cutting with scissors, copying forms, imitating movements, running, throwing a ball and doing push-ups. Researchers used a standardized measure of motor proficiency widely used in children with disabilities that measures fine manual control, manual coordination, body coordination and strength and agility.

The Washington University study is the first to evaluate motor impairments in children with autism spectrum disorder and their siblings who don't have the disorder.

Hilton, along with co-author John Constantino, MD, and their team also studied the link between motor impairment and the severity of the autism spectrum disorder.

Testing showed that 83 percent of children with autism spectrum disorder were below average in motor skills. Their siblings without an autism spectrum disorder generally scored in the normal range, with only 6 percent below average.

In addition, identical twin pairs had very similar scores. Non-twin siblings who each had autism spectrum disorder also had similar scores. And siblings in which one child had an autism spectrum disorder and one didn't had very different scores.

"The data suggests that genes play a role in the motor impairments observed in those with autism spectrum disorder," Hilton says. "This is further evidence that autism spectrum disorder is a largely genetic disorder."

"It's possible that developmental processes in the brain which give rise to motor coordination and social responsiveness are shared by both systems," says co-investigator Constantino, the Blanche F. Ittleson Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics and director of the William Greenleaf Eliot Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Washington University. "This could explain their association in autism and provide new ideas about intervention strategies to help affected children, such as innovative methods for promoting motor development."

In addition, the study showed that the lower motor proficiency score in children with an autism spectrum disorder, the greater the degree of social impairment and severity of the disorder.

"Kids who have difficulty with motor skills might have trouble with what we think are simple things like brushing their teeth, buttoning, snapping or starting a zipper ? things that are so basic to being independent, but would cause other problems at school," Hilton says. "They would need to have an aide or someone helping them, and that would set them off as different from the other kids."

These impairments can lead to bigger problems later on, Hilton says.

"Some kids aren't socially aware enough that it bothers them, but others are aware, and they feel bad about themselves," she says. "They may have low self-esteem, so even if they have delays only in the motor skills, there is a lot of impact on their well being into adulthood."

###

Washington University School of Medicine's 2,100 employed and volunteer faculty physicians also are the medical staff of Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's hospitals. The School of Medicine is one of the leading medical research, teaching and patient care institutions in the nation, currently ranked fourth in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Through its affiliations with Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's hospitals, the School of Medicine is linked to BJC HealthCare.

Hilton CL, Zhang Y, White, MR, Klohr CL, Constantino J. Motor impairment in sibling pairs concordant and discordant for autism spectrum disorders. Autism. Published Jan. 18, 2012.


[ | E-mail | Share ]

 

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

The rest is here:
Autism affects motor skills, study indicates

Teens With Autism Preoccupied With TV, Video Games: Study

Posted on by

TUESDAY, Feb. 14 (HealthDay News) -- When given the opportunity to have screen time, children with autism spectrum disorders typically choose television and video games over social interactive media, such as email, a new study finds .

The preoccupation with video games could interfere with the children's socialization and learning, warned the researchers, whose study appears online in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by problems with social interaction, communication and restricted interests and behaviors. Autism spectrum disorders, or ASDs, include Asperger syndrome, which is a milder form of autism.

In conducting the study, the researchers analyzed information on more than 1,000 teens in special education classes, including those with autism spectrum disorders, learning and intellectual disabilities, and speech problems.

About 60 percent of the teens with autism spectrum disorders spent most of their time watching TV or videos, the investigators found.

"This rate appears to be high, given that among typically developing adolescents, only 28 percent have been shown to be 'high users' of television," Paul Shattuck, an assistant professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, said in a university news release. "Television viewing is clearly a preferred activity for children with ASDs, regardless of symptoms, functional level or family status."

Moreover, 41 percent of the teens with autism spent most of their free time playing video games, the study authors found.

"Given that only 18 percent of youths in the general population are considered to be high users of video games, it seems reasonable to infer based on the current results, that kids with ASDs are at significantly greater risk of high use of this media than are youths without ASDs," Shattuck added.

In contrast, the teens with autism spectrum disorders were less likely to use email or social media.

"We found that 64.4 percent of youth with ASDs did not use email or chat at all," Shattuck said. "Kids with speech and language impairments and learning disabilities were about two times more likely to use email or chat rooms than those with ASDs."

He noted, however, use of social media increased among the teens with autism spectrum disorders as they got older and their cognitive skills improved. Cognitive is a word used to describe brain-based functions such as memory, thinking, learning and processing information.

"This proclivity for screen time might be turned into something we can take advantage of to enhance social skills and learning achievement, especially [with] recent innovations in devices like iPads," Shattuck suggested.

-- Mary Elizabeth Dallas

Copyright © 2012 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

SOURCE: Washington University in St. Louis, news release, January 2012

See the original post:
Teens With Autism Preoccupied With TV, Video Games: Study

Els to stage another big charity series for autism

Posted on by

LOS ANGELES (AP)—Ernie Els is staging his “Els for Autism” golf challenge again, and this time he has backing from SAP, one of his top corporate sponsors.

He describes it as the largest golf charity event in the world, a series of 30 tournaments from April through September, with the final being held Oct. 19-20 at The Gallery Club in Las Vegas for the low net winning team (two players) and any team that raises at least $10,000.

In the first year, the event included 1,700 golfers, 9,000 donors and raised $1.8 million.

“SAP has taken over the golf challenge, so they’ve come in all guns blazing this year, and I think we’re going to have a wonderful time,” Els said. “I think we can double what we did last year.”

The money is going toward a $30 million education and research facility in south Florida for children with autism. Els’ son, Ben, is autistic, and Els has been driven in recent years to help families cope with children with autism and to help find a cure.

Els said with his own money and separate fundraising, he has reached the $9 million mark toward building the center.

“I was struck when I got to the grand finale in Vegas last year,” Els said. “Ninety percent of the people there that played in the challenge, those people’s lives are affected by autism, and a lot of them brought their kids to the event. I met people, numerous families, where the families have three kids, and all three of them have autism at a level where they have to care for their kids. They can’t even go to a school or anything.

“There were some really heart-wrenching moments there,” he said. “We learned. We give back to the autism community, and I think we feel like a big family when we get together there.”

———

PRESIDENTIAL FUTURE: Fred Couples wouldn’t mind coming back as U.S. captain at the Presidents Cup for a third time.

A decision for the 2013 matches at Muirfield Village is expected in the next few months. The Americans have won the last two times with Couples at the helm, and with Greg Norman leading the International team. Couples said he has spoken to PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem and other tour brass.

“I think I have a very good shot at it, and I would love to do it again,” he said.

For the International side, speculation had shifted toward Nick Price, who wanted to wait until after Norman was captain, especially at Royal Melbourne last year.

Now, however, Ernie Els wonders if the Shark shouldn’t get another turn.

One of the complaints from the International team was it didn’t have enough say in how the matches were run—from picking which format to use on opening day, to how the team is selected (such as number of captain’s picks) to how the course is set up.

That’s the biggest difference from the Ryder Cup, which essentially is a competition between two tours. The Presidents Cup is run solely by the PGA Tour. Norman spoke out against these issues in the final press conference in Australia.

“There’s change coming, and it’s because of him,” Els said. “I feel Greg should get the benefit of these changes.”

———

CHAIRMAN FRAZAR: Harrison Frazar gave up golf for a corporate job when he left Texas, unsure whether he wanted to play the game for a living. It won’t be long before he’ll be in a coat and tie at board meetings again, very much vested in golf.

Frazar has been elected chairman of the Players Advisory Council, winning a player election over Scott Verplank and Ben Crane. As head of the 16-player group, that means Frazar in two years will become one of four players on the PGA Tour policy board.

———

MATCH PLAY: Ernie Els has had such a love-hate relationship with the Match Play Championship that he didn’t even bother playing in 2004 and 2005. This time, he barely made it. After sitting out last week, Els slipped to No. 65 in the world. The only reason he will get into the first World Golf Championship of the year is because Phil Mickelson is not playing.

Els is desperate to play in such tournaments as he tries to get into the top 50 to avoid missing the Masters.

“There were days when I didn’t even go there. It shows you how times have changed,” Els said. “Now I’m grateful to be in the field. I’ll be playing next week, and I’ve got to play myself into Doral and I’ve got to play myself into the Masters. That’s a nice break coming my way.”

Els wouldn’t have to worry about the Masters if he had won a green jacket. His closest call came in 2004, when he was tied for the lead until Mickelson holed an 18-foot birdie putt on the final hole. Now, he owes one to Mickelson for getting into the Match Play.

“I’ll buy Phil a steak dinner this week at some point,” Els said with a smile. “Maybe send him a good bottle of Bordeaux or something.”

———

DIVOTS: The forecast is for a strong wind the opening two days, shifting directions on Friday. … UCLA sophomore Patrick Cantlay didn’t offer much when asked about his future, saying only that he is letting his father sort through the offers and possibilities. … Tim Clark is making his first start of the year. He played only four times last year—the last one as defending champion of The Players Championship—because of a mysterious elbow injury.

See the original post here:
Els to stage another big charity series for autism

UM Human Embryonic Stem Cell Line Placed On National Registry

Posted on by

ANN ARBOR — The University of Michigan’s first human embryonic stem cell line will be placed on the U.S. National Institutes of Health’s registry, making the cells available for federally funded research. It is the first of the stem cell lines derived at the University of Michigan to be placed on the registry.

The line, known as UM4-6, is a genetically normal line, derived in October 2010 from a cluster of about 30 cells removed from a donated five-day-old embryo roughly the size of the period at the end of this sentence. That embryo was created for reproduction through in-vitro fertilization but was no longer needed for that purpose and was therefore about to be discarded.

“This is significant, because acceptance of these cells on the registry demonstrates our attention to details of proper oversight, consenting, and following of NIH guidelines established in 2009,” says Gary Smith, who derived the line and also is co-director of the U-M Consortium for Stem Cell Therapies, part of the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute. “It now makes the line available to researchers who can apply for federal funding to use it in their work; this is an important step.”

The line is the culmination of years of planning and preparation and was made possible by Michigan voters’ November 2008 approval of a state constitutional amendment permitting scientists here to derive embryonic stem cell lines using surplus embryos from fertility clinics or embryos with genetic abnormalities and not suitable for implantation.

“We expect these cells will be used by investigators worldwide to enhance our understanding of stem cell biology, and together with disease-specific lines, discover treatments and cures for genetic diseases,” says Smith, who is a professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Michigan Medical School.

UM is among just a handful of United States universities creating human embryonic stem cell lines. There are only 147 stem cell lines available on the registry.

“We envision in the future that investigators will be able to use the genetically normal embryonic stem cell lines like UM4-6, together with disease-specific embryonic stem cell lines, as a model system to investigate what causes these diseases and come up with treatments,” said Sue O’Shea, professor of Cell and Developmental Biology, and co-director of the Consortium for Stem Cell Therapies.

UM also has two other human embryonic stem cells lines submitted to the national registry. Both are disease specific, the first carrying the genetic defect that causes hemophilia B, and the other carries the gene responsible for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, a hereditary neurological disorder.

Smith expects to soon submit eight additional human embryonic stem lines for consideration on the national registry: three genetically normal and five new disease specific lines.

This is a historic achievement that will lead to treatments and cures for serious, life-altering diseases and is more evidence that our University of Michigan researchers are leading the world in cutting-edge science that will impact health around the globe, says Eva Feldman, M.D., director of the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute.

“This is another major step forward for medical science in Michigan,” Feldman said. “This opens us another avenue for researchers to really begin exploring the causes and progression of those diseases, with the ultimate goal of finding new therapies for patients.”

Contributors to the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute’s Consortium for Stem Cell Therapies include the Taubman Institute; the Office of the Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs; the Office of the Medical School Dean; the Comprehensive Cancer Center; the Department of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases; the Office of the Vice President for Research; the School of Dentistry; the Department of Pathology; the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology; the College of Engineering; the Life Sciences Institute; the Department of Neurology; and U-M’s Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research.

A. Alfred Taubman, founder and chair of UM’s Taubman Institute, called the registry placement a tremendous step for stem cell research.

“I consider stem cells to be a modern medical miracle – the most exciting advance in medicine since antibiotics. The progress we have made throughout the state in stem cell research has been nothing short of remarkable,” Taubman said. “This milestone means much to the University of Michigan and the state of Michigan, but also to the world. It offers another route for researchers to move ahead in studying these horrible diseases. We hope it is the first of many lines that the University of Michigan can contribute to the global efforts to improve human health.”

For more information about the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute at the University of Michigan Medical School, visit http://www.taubmaninstitute.org

Original post:
UM Human Embryonic Stem Cell Line Placed On National Registry

U-M Human Embryonic Stem Cell Line Placed On National Registry for Researchers

Posted on by

 

 

Line is first from U-M accepted to the U.S. National Institutes of Health registry, now available for federally-funded research

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Feb. 14, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The University of Michigan's first human embryonic stem cell line will be placed on the U.S. National Institutes of Health's registry, making the cells available for federally-funded research. It is the first of the stem cell lines derived at the University of Michigan to be placed on the registry.

The line, known as UM4-6, is a genetically normal line, derived in October 2010 from a cluster of about 30 cells removed from a donated five-day-old embryo roughly the size of the period at the end of this sentence. That embryo was created for reproduction but was no longer needed for that purpose and was therefore about to be discarded.

"This is significant, because acceptance of these cells on the registry demonstrates our attention to details of proper oversight, consenting, and following of NIH guidelines established in 2009," says Gary Smith, Ph.D., who derived the line and also is co-director of the U-M Consortium for Stem Cell Therapies, part of the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute.

"It now makes the line available to researchers who can apply for federal funding to use it in their work; this is an important step."

The line is the culmination of years of planning and preparation and was made possible by Michigan voters' November 2008 approval of a state constitutional amendment permitting scientists here to derive embryonic stem cell lines using surplus embryos from fertility clinics or embryos with genetic abnormalities and not suitable for implantation.

"We expect these cells will be used by investigators worldwide to enhance our understanding of stem cell biology, and together with disease-specific lines, discover treatments and cures for genetic diseases," says Smith, who is a professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Michigan Medical School.

U-M is among just a handful of U.S. universities creating human embryonic stem cell lines. There are only 147 stem cell lines available on the registry.

"We envision in the future that investigators will be able to use the genetically normal embryonic stem cell lines like UM4-6, together with disease-specific embryonic stem cell lines, as a model system to investigate what causes these diseases and come up with treatments," says Sue O'Shea, professor of Cell and Developmental Biology, and co-director of the Consortium for Stem Cell Therapies.

U-M also has two other human embryonic stem cells lines submitted to the national registry. Both are disease specific, the first carrying the genetic defect that causes hemophilia B, and the other carries the gene responsible for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, a hereditary neurological disorder.

Smith expects to soon submit eight additional human embryonic stem lines for consideration on the national registry: three genetically normal and five new disease specific lines.

This is a historic achievement that will lead to treatments and cures for serious, life-altering diseases and is more evidence that our University of Michigan researchers are leading the world in cutting-edge science that will impact health around the globe, says Eva Feldman, M.D., Ph.D., director of the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute.

"This is another major step forward for medical science in Michigan. This opens us another avenue for researchers to really begin exploring the causes and progression of those diseases, with the ultimate goal of finding new therapies for patients," says Feldman.

Contributors to the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute's Consortium for Stem Cell Therapies include the Taubman Institute; the Office of the Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs; the Office of the Medical School Dean; the Comprehensive Cancer Center; the Department of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases; the Office of the Vice President for Research; the School of Dentistry; the Department of Pathology; the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology; the College of Engineering; the Life Sciences Institute; the Department of Neurology; and U-M's Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research.

A. Alfred Taubman, founder and chair of U-M's Taubman Institute, called the registry placement a tremendous step for stem cell research.

"I consider stem cells to be a modern medical miracle – the most exciting advance in medicine since antibiotics. The progress we have made throughout the state in stem cell research has been nothing short of remarkable," says Taubman.

"This milestone means much to the University of Michigan and the state of Michigan, but also to the world. It offers another route for researchers to move ahead in studying these horrible diseases. We hope it is the first of many lines that the University of Michigan can contribute to the global efforts to improve human health."

For more information about the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute at the University of Michigan Medical School, visit http://www.taubmaninstitute.org

For more information about stem cell research at U-M, visit http://www.umich.edu/stemcell

 

 

 

 

SOURCE University of Michigan Health System

Back to top

RELATED LINKS
http://www.med.umich.edu

Read this article:
U-M Human Embryonic Stem Cell Line Placed On National Registry for Researchers

‘U’ stem cell line added to NIH

Posted on by

Yesterday the University announced it will contribute a line of human embryonic stem cells to the U.S. National Institutes of Health registry as part of a continuing effort to develop treatments for life-threatening diseases.

For the past two weeks, the University has been finalizing plans to make the line available nationally. This will be the University’s first national addition to the registry since Michigan voters approved a constitutional amendment allowing research on surplus embryos unfit for reproduction in 2008. Other universities, including the University of California, Los Angeles, Stanford University and the University of Connecticut, have also contributed to the registry.

The NIH registry created guidelines in July 2009 that make independently generated embryonic lines for federally funded research available. There are currently 147 stem cell lines on the registry.

Gary Smith, co-director of the A. A. Taubman Consortium for Stem Cell Therapies, started work on the line in October 2010. Smith said development of the line sets the University apart from other major research institutes.

“I do believe it makes us unique in comparison to many other universities,” Smith said. “It does put us in a handful of universities across the Unites States (that have contributed to the registry).”

The line was created from a five-day-old embryo approximately the size of a period, which would have been discarded because it was not fit for implantation. The cells will be used to understand stem cell biology, how certain diseases form and to design treatments and cures for those diseases, Smith said.

The line is genetically normal, but University researchers are working to develop two disease-specific lines, Smith said. Researchers are also working on eight others — five of which will be genetically normal.

Sue O’Shea, the other co-director of the Consortium, said in a press release the combination of the two types of stem cell lines will open up a wide range of possibilities in disease research.

“We envision in the future that investigators will be able to use the genetically normal embryonic stem cell lines … together with disease-specific embryonic stem cell lines, as a model system to investigate what causes these diseases and come up with treatments,” O’Shea said.

Eva Feldman, director of the A.A. Taubman Medical Research Institute, said in the press release the breakthrough of the developing lines offers additional opportunities to find cures to diseases.

“This is another major step forward for medical science in Michigan,” Feldman said. “This opens up another avenue for researchers to really begin exploring the causes and progression of those diseases, with the ultimate goal of finding new therapies for patients.”

A. Alfred Taubman, founder and chair of the Taubman Institute, added in the press release that the recent stem cell progress is monumental for the University’s research programs.

“I consider stem cells to be a modern miracle — the most exciting advance in medicine since antibiotics,” Taubman said. “The progress we have made throughout the state in stem cell research has been nothing short of remarkable.”

Read more:
‘U’ stem cell line added to NIH

Bioheart to Present at BioFlorida's Saturday Exchange

Posted on by

SUNRISE, Fla., Feb. 15, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bioheart (BHRT.OB), a leader in developing stem cell therapies to treat cardiovascular diseases, today announced that they have been chosen as a presenter in the BioFlorida Saturday Exchange conference later this month.

The Saturday Exchange is a reprise of the successful Biomed Exchange meeting, held for many years during the 1980-90's. Well over 100 life science professionals gathered in Miami on a Saturday morning each month to learn about various aspects of the community's growing life sciences cluster. The Exchange will take place at University of Miami's Life Science & Technology Park.

The Keynote Speaker is Bioheart's Chairman William P. Murphy Jr., MD. Dr. Murphy will share his career experiences and insights as a leading entrepreneur in the medical device industry, spanning the founding of Cordis Corporation to more recent ventures. In addition, Mike Tomas, Bioheart's president and CEO and Kristin Comella, Bioheart's CSO will present the use of stem cells in degenerative diseases

"The Saturday Exchange brings together many professionals to discuss the field of biotechnology," said Mike Tomas. "Bioheart is excited about the opportunity to represent the South Florida community and share our experiences in the field of regenerative medicine."

About Bioheart

Bioheart (BHRT.OB) is committed to developing stem cell therapies to treat congestive heart failure, lower limb ischemia, chronic heart ischemia, acute myocardial infarctions and other medical problems. The company focuses on the discovery and development of therapies that will improve patients' quality of life and reduce health care costs and hospitalizations. Bioheart's leading product, MyoCell, is a muscle-derived cell therapy designed to populate regions of scar tissue within a patient's heart to improve cardiac function.

For more information on Bioheart, visit http://www.bioheartinc.com.

Forward-Looking Statements: Except for historical matters contained herein, statements made in this press release are forward-looking statements. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, words such as "may," "will," "to," "plan," "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "could," "would," "estimate," or "continue" or the negative other variations thereof or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Also, forward-looking statements represent our management's beliefs and assumptions only as of the date hereof. Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements publicly, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.

The Company is subject to the risks and uncertainties described in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the section entitled "Risk Factors" in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2011.

More here:
Bioheart to Present at BioFlorida's Saturday Exchange

Bioheart to Present at BioFlorida’s Saturday Exchange

Posted on by

SUNRISE, Fla., Feb. 15, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bioheart (BHRT.OB), a leader in developing stem cell therapies to treat cardiovascular diseases, today announced that they have been chosen as a presenter in the BioFlorida Saturday Exchange conference later this month.

The Saturday Exchange is a reprise of the successful Biomed Exchange meeting, held for many years during the 1980-90's. Well over 100 life science professionals gathered in Miami on a Saturday morning each month to learn about various aspects of the community's growing life sciences cluster. The Exchange will take place at University of Miami's Life Science & Technology Park.

The Keynote Speaker is Bioheart's Chairman William P. Murphy Jr., MD. Dr. Murphy will share his career experiences and insights as a leading entrepreneur in the medical device industry, spanning the founding of Cordis Corporation to more recent ventures. In addition, Mike Tomas, Bioheart's president and CEO and Kristin Comella, Bioheart's CSO will present the use of stem cells in degenerative diseases

"The Saturday Exchange brings together many professionals to discuss the field of biotechnology," said Mike Tomas. "Bioheart is excited about the opportunity to represent the South Florida community and share our experiences in the field of regenerative medicine."

About Bioheart

Bioheart (BHRT.OB) is committed to developing stem cell therapies to treat congestive heart failure, lower limb ischemia, chronic heart ischemia, acute myocardial infarctions and other medical problems. The company focuses on the discovery and development of therapies that will improve patients' quality of life and reduce health care costs and hospitalizations. Bioheart's leading product, MyoCell, is a muscle-derived cell therapy designed to populate regions of scar tissue within a patient's heart to improve cardiac function.

For more information on Bioheart, visit http://www.bioheartinc.com.

Forward-Looking Statements: Except for historical matters contained herein, statements made in this press release are forward-looking statements. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, words such as "may," "will," "to," "plan," "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "could," "would," "estimate," or "continue" or the negative other variations thereof or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Also, forward-looking statements represent our management's beliefs and assumptions only as of the date hereof. Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements publicly, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.

The Company is subject to the risks and uncertainties described in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the section entitled "Risk Factors" in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2011.

More here:
Bioheart to Present at BioFlorida's Saturday Exchange

Bone Repair Stem Cell Breakthrough Shows Promise

Posted on by

Editor's Choice
Main Category: Stem Cell Research
Article Date: 15 Feb 2012 - 8:00 PST

email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions  

Current Article Ratings:

Patient / Public:

5 (3 votes)

Healthcare Prof:
According to a study published in the February issue of the STEM CELL Translational Medicine Journal , a world-first technique for generating adult stem cells (mesenchymal stem cells [MSCs]) has been developed by researchers at the University of Queensland. This new method can be used to repair bone and possibly other organs, and will considerably affect individuals suffering from a variety of serious diseases.

Professor Nicholas Fisk, who leads the collaborative study between the UQ Clinical Research Center (UQCCR) and the UQ's Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN), explained:

"We used a small molecule to induce embryonic stem cells over a 10 day period, which is much faster than other studies reported in the literature.

The technique also worked on their less contentious counterparts, induced pluripotent stem cells.

To make the pluripotent mature stem cells useful in the clinic, they have to be told what type of cell they need to become (pre-differentiated), before being administered to an injured organ, or otherwise they could form tumors.

Because only small numbers of MSCs exist in the bone marrow, and harvesting bone marrow from a healthy donor is an invasive procedure, the ability to make our own MSCs in large number in the laboratory is an exciting step in the future widespread clinical use of MSCs.

We were able to show these new forms of stem cells exhibited all the characteristics of bone marrow stem cells and we are currently examining their bone repair capability."

Ernst Wolvetang, co-researcher on the study and AIBN Associate Professor, explained that the technique had overcome a considerable obstacle in the translation of stem cell-based therapy.

Wolvetang said: "We are very excited by this research, which has brought together stem cell researchers from two of the major UQ research hubs UQCCR and AIBN."

Written by: Grace Rattue

Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Visit our stem cell research section for the latest news on this subject. UniQuest, The University of Queensland's main commercialization company, invites parties interested in licensing the intellectual property relating to this discovery to contact UniQuest on 3365 4037 or lifesciences@uniquest.com.au.

Source: University of Queensland

Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

MLA

Grace Rattue. "Bone Repair Stem Cell Breakthrough Shows Promise." Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 15 Feb. 2012. Web.
16 Feb. 2012. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/241706.php&gt;

APA

Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.


Rate this article:
(Hover over the stars then click to rate) Patient / Public:
or Health Professional:

Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.

All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)

Contact Our News Editors

For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.

Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:

Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.


View original post here:
Bone Repair Stem Cell Breakthrough Shows Promise

U-M human embryonic stem cell line placed on national registry

Posted on by

Public release date: 14-Feb-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Mary F. Masson
mfmasson@umich.edu
734-764-2220
University of Michigan Health System

ANN ARBOR, Mich. ? The University of Michigan's first human embryonic stem cell line will be placed on the U.S. National Institutes of Health's registry, making the cells available for federally-funded research. It is the first of the stem cell lines derived at the University of Michigan to be placed on the registry.

The line, known as UM4-6, is a genetically normal line, derived in October 2010 from a cluster of about 30 cells removed from a donated five-day-old embryo roughly the size of the period at the end of this sentence. That embryo was created for reproduction but was no longer needed for that purpose and was therefore about to be discarded.

"This is significant, because acceptance of these cells on the registry demonstrates our attention to details of proper oversight, consenting, and following of NIH guidelines established in 2009," says Gary Smith, Ph.D., who derived the line and also is co-director of the U-M Consortium for Stem Cell Therapies, part of the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute.

"It now makes the line available to researchers who can apply for federal funding to use it in their work; this is an important step."

The line is the culmination of years of planning and preparation and was made possible by Michigan voters' November 2008 approval of a state constitutional amendment permitting scientists here to derive embryonic stem cell lines using surplus embryos from fertility clinics or embryos with genetic abnormalities and not suitable for implantation.

"We expect these cells will be used by investigators worldwide to enhance our understanding of stem cell biology, and together with disease-specific lines, discover treatments and cures for genetic diseases," says Smith, who is a professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Michigan Medical School.

U-M is among just a handful of U.S. universities creating human embryonic stem cell lines. There are only 147 stem cell lines available on the registry.

"We envision in the future that investigators will be able to use the genetically normal embryonic stem cell lines like UM4-6, together with disease-specific embryonic stem cell lines, as a model system to investigate what causes these diseases and come up with treatments," says Sue O'Shea, professor of Cell and Developmental Biology, and co-director of the Consortium for Stem Cell Therapies.

U-M also has two other human embryonic stem cells lines submitted to the national registry. Both are disease specific, the first carrying the genetic defect that causes hemophilia B, and the other carries the gene responsible for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, a hereditary neurological disorder.

Smith expects to soon submit eight additional human embryonic stem lines for consideration on the national registry: three genetically normal and five new disease specific lines.

This is a historic achievement that will lead to treatments and cures for serious, life-altering diseases and is more evidence that our University of Michigan researchers are leading the world in cutting-edge science that will impact health around the globe, says Eva Feldman, M.D., Ph.D., director of the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute.

"This is another major step forward for medical science in Michigan. This opens us another avenue for researchers to really begin exploring the causes and progression of those diseases, with the ultimate goal of finding new therapies for patients," says Feldman.

Contributors to the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute's Consortium for Stem Cell Therapies include the Taubman Institute; the Office of the Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs; the Office of the Medical School Dean; the Comprehensive Cancer Center; the Department of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases; the Office of the Vice President for Research; the School of Dentistry; the Department of Pathology; the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology; the College of Engineering; the Life Sciences Institute; the Department of Neurology; and U-M's Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research.

A. Alfred Taubman, founder and chair of U-M's Taubman Institute, called the registry placement a tremendous step for stem cell research.

"I consider stem cells to be a modern medical miracle ? the most exciting advance in medicine since antibiotics. The progress we have made throughout the state in stem cell research has been nothing short of remarkable," says Taubman.

"This milestone means much to the University of Michigan and the state of Michigan, but also to the world. It offers another route for researchers to move ahead in studying these horrible diseases. We hope it is the first of many lines that the University of Michigan can contribute to the global efforts to improve human health."

###

For more information about the A. Alfred Taubman Medical Research Institute at the University of Michigan Medical School, visit http://www.taubmaninstitute.org

For more information about stem cell research at U-M, visit http://www.umich.edu/stemcell


[ | E-mail | Share ]

 

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

See original here:
U-M human embryonic stem cell line placed on national registry

Stem Cell Stocks: Mending Scarred Hearts

Posted on by

A new study at Johns Hopkins University has shown that stem cells from patients' own cardiac tissue can be used to heal scarred tissue after a heart attack. This is certainly exciting news considering heart failure is still the No. 1 cause of death in men and women.

The study included 25 heart attack victims, 17 of whom got the stem cell treatment. Those patients saw a 50% reduction in cardiac scar tissue after one year, while the eight control patients saw no improvement.

The procedure involves removing a tiny portion of heart tissue through a needle, cultivating the stem cells from that tissue, and reinserting them in a second minimally invasive procedure, according to Bloomberg.

"If we can regenerate the whole heart, then the patient would be completely normal," said Eduardo Marban, director of Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute who was the study's lead author. "We haven't fulfilled that yet, but we've gotten rid of half of the injury, and that's a good start."

Business section: Investing ideas
Interested in investing in the promise that stem cell therapy holds? For a look at the investing landscape, we compiled a list of the 10 largest companies involved in stem cell therapy.

Do you think this industry will see growth from stem cell research? (Click here to access free, interactive tools to analyze these ideas.)

1. BioTime (NYSE: BTX  ) : Focuses on regenerative medicine and blood plasma volume expanders. Market cap at $291.95M. The company develops and markets research products in the field of stem cells and regenerative medicine. It develops therapeutic products derived from stem cells for the treatment of retinal and neural degenerative diseases; cardiovascular and blood diseases; therapeutic applications of stem cells to treat orthopedic diseases, injuries, and cancer; and retinal cell product for use in the treatment of age-related macular degeneration.

2. Cleveland BioLabs (Nasdaq: CBLI  ) : Market cap at $111.50M. Its products include Protectan CBLB502, a radioprotectant molecule with multiple medical and defense applications for reducing injury from acute stresses, such as radiation and chemotherapy by mobilizing various natural cell protecting mechanisms, including inhibition of apoptosis, reduction of oxidative damage, and induction of factors that induce protection and regeneration of stem cells in bone marrow and the intestines, and Protectan CBLB612, a modified lipopeptide mycoplasma that acts as a stimulator and mobilizer of hematopoietic stem cells to peripheral blood, providing hematopoietic recovery during chemotherapy and during donor preparation for bone marrow transplantation.

3. Gentium: Focuses on the development and manufacture of its primary product candidate, defibrotide, an investigational drug based on a mixture of single-stranded and double-stranded DNA extracted from pig intestines. Market cap at $128.29M. The company develops defibrotide for the treatment and prevention of hepatic veno-occlusive disease (VOD), a condition that occurs when veins in the liver are blocked as a result of cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy or radiation, that are administered prior to stem cell transplantation.

4. Geron (Nasdaq: GERN  ) : Develops biopharmaceuticals for the treatment of cancer and chronic degenerative diseases, including spinal cord injury, heart failure, and diabetes. Market cap at $265.57M. The company has licensing agreement with the University Campus Suffolk to develop human embryonic stem cell-derived chondrocytes for the treatment of cartilage damage and joint disease.

5. Harvard Bioscience: Develops, manufactures, and markets apparatus and scientific instruments used in life science research in pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, universities, and government laboratories in the United States and internationally. Market cap at $118.28M. Develops devices used by clinicians and researchers in the field of regenerative medicine, including bioreactors for growing tissue and organs outside the body, and injectors for stem cell therapy.

6. Lydall (NYSE: LDL  ) : Designs and manufactures specialty engineered products for thermal/acoustical, filtration/separation, and bio/medical applications in the United States. Market cap at $163.44M. In addition, it offers Cell-Freeze, a medical device used for cryogenic storage of peripheral blood stem cells.

8. Osiris Therapeutics (Nasdaq: OSIR  ) : Focuses on the development and marketing of therapeutic products to treat various medical conditions in the inflammatory, autoimmune, orthopedic, and cardiovascular areas. Market cap at $157.26M. A stem cell company, focuses on the development and marketing of therapeutic products to treat various medical conditions in the inflammatory, autoimmune, orthopedic, and cardiovascular areas.

7. Verastem: Market cap at $229.00M. Focuses on discovering and developing proprietary small molecule drugs targeting cancer stem cells (CSCs) in breast and other cancers.

Interactive Chart: Press Play to compare changes in analyst ratings over the last two years for the stocks mentioned above. Analyst ratings sourced from Zacks Investment Research.

Kapitall's Alexander Crawford does not own any of the shares mentioned above.

Read the original here:
Stem Cell Stocks: Mending Scarred Hearts

One Wealthy Zealot Would Make a 20 Year Difference

Posted on by

Something to think about: outstanding success for the SENS Foundation and its mission would look something like the assured availability of $100-300 million for research and development. That much money tends to build the successes and cachet needed to attract more of the same. To get to this point from where the Foundation stands now (a yearly budget around $1 million for the SENS Foundation, and an unknown but likely smaller level of unaffiliated funding for the same goals) might take twenty years of steady growth and success, with the end result being a substantial persuasion and conversion of the present research and funding culture for medical development. That wouldn't mean that the SENS Foundation would be a $100 million giant, or even necessarily still exist, but it would give rise to a diverse and competitive community that inherits the founders' values and goals - to defeat aging by building rejuvenation biotechnology more or less as presently envisaged in the SENS platform.

So what happens if a fellow with a net worth of $100-300 million becomes a zealot for the cause, overnight perhaps, and decides to put his net worth behind the SENS cause because without life and health, what is money? I use the world zealot in the best possible way here: someone who values the cause greatly enough to spend more time and money than most other people consider reasonable - but in this case is entirely justified, given the present harms caused by aging. But what happens if the community acquires such a zealot? To my eyes it looks like we would gain two decades of headway, and projects that would otherwise languish for twenty years would commence immediately. In a pattern of growth that is limited only by the level of investment - which is exactly where rejuvenation biotechnology is today - everything in the timing hinges on when the money arrives.

(It's a little more complex than this, of course, given that biotechnology is rapidly improving and costs for any given life science research project will fall rapidly over time - but you get the picture. Early money is still very much better than waiting).

The interesting question is why this doesn't happen: there are a fair number of very wealthy people in the world, and logic suggests that the best possible use for much those resources from their individual perspectives would to buy more life - since we are now in an age in which it is possible to make a run at buying significantly more life. What is wealth to the sick or the dead when it comes to it? But I don't think that this is a "why don't more people support engineered longevity?" sort of a question. My suspicion is that it is not just longevity science that looks in vain for wealthy zealots, but that in general any grand cause that people can feel very strongly about also lacks wealthy zealots. It seems to me that there is in fact little overlap between the small population of zealots for a cause, people willing to devote their working life and significant resources to a grand project, and the small population of very wealthy people, those with a net worth of $100 million and up.

We can speculate as to why this might be. For example, I might try to argue that the sort of person who can successfully run the long and unlikely process of becoming very wealthy is the sort of person who doesn't think about what they can do with money. They are not doing what they do for money, and the process is their passion. Someone who was a zealot for a cause would have stepped off that process long before reaching the possibility of attaining a very high net worth. Having a mere seven figure net worth for most people enters the territory of being able to prioritize volunteering over working, or funding a small mission in their favored charity. The temptation to break off and work on doing good rather than continually doubling down and doubling down on the process is ever there.

Or to put it another way, the passion for the process that will make a person wealthy takes up the much the same mental space as the passion for a cause: there are only so many hours in the day, and only so much attention that a person can give to any one set of information. So you are unlikely to see a person who has (a) accomplished the necessary devotion to work and process for a shot at becoming very wealthy, but also (b) put in the necessary work and process to become a zealot.

Or to put it yet another way, neither becoming exceedingly wealthy nor becoming a zealot are things that just happen one day out of the blue. They are each a fair way down their own different paths of effort, realization, and specialization.

This sort of thinking is the flip side of considering persuasion, high net worth philanthropy, and fundraising in general. It suggests that persuasion is exactly necessary because, for one, the odds of a funding source emerging from the pool of already-persuaded-and-fully-into-it supporters is pretty remote. Secondly, the odds are equally low that any particular high net worth individual or organization will suddenly get the picture of their own accord and begin pouring out money like water. These are different worlds, different views, different life courses that touch at few points - so people must set out to deliberately try to bring them together.

Source:
http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter/latest_rss_feed.cfm

Illustrating Broken Incentives

Posted on by

Research is fundamentally broken by regulation in much of the world. One facet of this problem is that the cost of obtaining approval for new drugs and technologies is so astronomical that large swathes of the research community are directed towards finding marginal new uses for drugs that are already approved by regulators. This activity is, despite occasional successes like the one linked here, always going to be far less productive and useful than tailoring new technologies to the problem at hand. This is one of many ways in which regulation slows progress to a grinding crawl. Because people only pay attention to the occasional successes, they don't see or much care about the many other potential successes that never happened and were never worked on because of the perverse financial incentives put upon the research community by the regulators: "Bexarotene has been approved for the treatment of cancer by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for more than a decade. These experiments explored whether the medication might also be used to help patients with Alzheimer's disease, and the results were more than promising. ... the main cholesterol carrier in the brain, Apolipoprotein E (ApoE), facilitated the clearance of the amyloid beta proteins. [Researchers] chose to explore the effectiveness of bexarotene for increasing ApoE expression. The elevation of brain ApoE levels, in turn, speeds the clearance of amyloid beta from the brain. Bexarotene acts by stimulating retinoid X receptors (RXR), which control how much ApoE is produced. ... The present view of the scientific community is that small soluble forms of amyloid beta cause the memory impairments seen in animal models and humans with the disease. Within six hours of administering bexarotene, however, soluble amyloid levels fell by 25 percent; even more impressive, the effect lasted as long as three days. Finally, this shift was correlated with rapid improvement in a broad range of behaviors in three different mouse models of Alzheimer's."

Link: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-fda-approved-drug-rapidly-amyloid-brain.html

Source:
http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter/latest_rss_feed.cfm

Reminders

Posted on by

This short post at Business Insider serves as a reminder of two items. Firstly, the author notes that 'Silicon Valley billionaires are pouring money into gene research and modifications' - and I wish that were the case! There are very few philanthropists and investors amongst the wealthy of the technology industry who are doing this, and Peter Thiel and Larry Ellison are outliers in having devoted millions to this end. Journalists who cover the tech industry sometimes wake up momentarily to see instances of the comparatively rare funding of longevity science - and then assume it to be more commonplace than it is. In fact, progress in this field is absolute limited and determined by the lack of funding for programs like SENS: the path ahead is very clear, and availability of funds for the research and development is the bottleneck. The second point is illustrated by glancing at the article comments, in which we can see that it is still very much the cultural norm to decry efforts to extend healthy life - and to be expected to decry efforts to extend healthy life, to conform to this view or suffer censure. Consider this for a moment: we still live in a society in which the mainstream view is that people must suffer horribly and die on schedule, and to do anything about that is wrong. Personally, I blame much of that required-attitude-in-public on the pervasive influence of Malthusian, hair shirt environmentalism, coupled with some of the less pleasant aspects of human nature in all of us. For the foreseeable future this is the great act of persuasion we must undertake: convince a large segment of the population to agree in public that we can use biotechnology to do away with the suffering of old age, and that we should use biotechnology to do away with the suffering of old age.

Link: http://www.businessinsider.com/peter-thiel-death-is-a-problem-that-can-be-solved-2012-2

Source:
http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter/latest_rss_feed.cfm

An Interview on Very Small Embryonic-Like Stem Cells

Posted on by

"Very small embryonic-like stem cells" is the name given by one research group to populations of stem cells that they believe sustain adult tissue throughout life, and which retain most of the desired characteristics needed for the first generation of cell-based regenerative therapies. They are thought to be pluripotent, able to give rise to any form of cell, unlike the more limited and better known forms of stem cell identified in adults and used in the development of regenerative therapies. Over at h+ Magazine, there's an interview with Mariusz Ratajczak, one of the researchers involved:

Very small embryonic like stem cells (VSELs) are purified from adult tissues and are potential sources of stem cells for application in regenerative medicine and stem cell therapies. ... A question that is important from the developmental point of view is why pluripotent stem cells, (PSCs) such as VSELs, would reside in adult organs? For many years, it had been accepted that adult tissues contain only tissue-committed stem cells (TCSCs) that have limited possibility of differentiation - for example, epidermal stem cells, hematopoietic stem cells, skeletal muscle stem cells.

Ratajczak has comments on longevity and regenerative medicine - it's always good to see noted researchers stepping up to support the goal of engineered longevity in public, given that it's only been a handful of years since that sort of freedom of opinion became possible for researchers who wished to retain their funding sources. One of the many necessary preconditions for widespread support of longevity science is that researchers must speak out in favor of rejuvenation biotechnology.

I am deeply convinced that regenerative medicine is our key to a better life and our key to extending lifespan. I believe that we will be able to employ [pluripotent stem cells] (e.g., VSELs), isolated from adult tissues, to harness stem cells to regenerate damaged organs. In combination with developing scaffold-technologies, we may be able to generate ex vivo organ fragments or even whole organs and replace organ transplantations with in vitro generated ones.

I should note that Ratajczak presented at the SENS5 conference last year, alongside other researchers bullish on the future of longevity and medical science. In his presentation, he theorizes a direct link between VSELs and aging:

We propose, based on our experimental data in animal models, that gradual decrease in the number of VSELs deposited in adult tissues, which occurs throughout life in an [insulin/insulin growth factor] signaling-dependent manner is an important mechanism of aging.

Which is much the view that the research community has on stem cells as a whole: stem cells and their capacity to maintain tissue decline with age, for reasons that are being explored in detail, and which may in the near future be addressed in a number of different ways.

Source:
http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter/latest_rss_feed.cfm

SPARC and Changes in Muscle Stem Cells With Age

Posted on by

Researchers are steadily cataloging the details of age-related changes in stem cells, which seem to have as much to do with the cellular environment as a whole as the cells themselves: "Aging causes phenotypic changes in skeletal muscle progenitor cells (SMPCs) that lead to the loss of myogenicity and adipogenesis. Secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC), which is secreted from SMPCs, stimulates myogenesis and inhibits adipogenesis. The present study aimed to examine whether changes in SPARC expression, its signaling pathway, or both are involved in age-related phenotypic changes in SMPCs. SPARC expression levels were comparable in SMPCs derived from young and old rats. However, when SPARC expression was reduced by a SPARC-specific siRNA, SMPCs from young rats showed reduced myogenesis and increased adipogenesis. In striking contrast, old rats showed little changes in these functions. ... These results suggest that, although SPARC plays a role in regulating SMPC function, SMPCs become refractory to the action of SPARC with age. Our data may explain an age-related shift from myogenesis to adipogenesis, associated with sarcopenia. ... Because SPARC enhances myogenesis and inhibits adipogenesis, we reasoned that its decreased expression or alterations in its signaling pathway in SMPCs contribute to age-related dysfunction of skeletal muscle, such as fatty infiltration and impaired muscle regeneration. The present study shows that the SPARC signaling pathway, rather than the level of its expression in SMPCs changes with age. It should be noted skeletal muscle cell types other than SMPCs, such as myofibers and endothelial cells, express SPARC. Moreover, SPARC expression levels decline with age in the skeletal muscles of mice. This indicates that although SPARC expression in SMPCs is not altered with age, the amount of SPARC available in the SMPC microenvironment would be decreased. Thus, it is possible that in addition to the decreased responsiveness of SMPC to SPARC, the age-related decline of SPARC expression levels in skeletal muscle accelerates age-related phenotypic changes in SMPC."

Link: http://impactaging.com/papers/v4/n1/full/100426.html

Source:
http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter/latest_rss_feed.cfm

Fasting Versus Cancer

Posted on by

As researchers continue to explore calorie restriction, intermittent fasting, and other forms of lowering food intake, then make discoveries like this: "Man may not live by bread alone, but cancer in animals appears less resilient, judging by a study that found chemotherapy drugs work better when combined with cycles of short, severe fasting. Even fasting on its own effectively treated a majority of cancers tested in animals, including cancers from human cells. ... For example, multiple cycles of fasting combined with chemotherapy cured 20 percent of mice with a highly aggressive type of children's cancer that had spread throughout the organism and 40 percent of mice with a more limited spread of the same cancer. No mice survived in either case if treated only with chemotherapy. Only a clinical trial lasting several years can demonstrate whether humans would benefit from the same treatment. ... As with any potential cancer treatment, fasting has its limits. The growth of large tumor masses was reduced by multiple fasting and chemotherapy cycles, but cancer-free survival could not be achieved. [Researchers] speculated that cells inside a large tumor may be protected in some way or that the variety of mutations in a large mass may make it more adaptable. ... The cell is, in fact, committing cellular suicide. What we're seeing is that the cancer cell tries to compensate for the lack of all these things missing in the blood after fasting. It may be trying to replace them, but it can't. ... A way to beat cancer cells may not be to try to find drugs that kill them specifically but to confuse them by generating extreme environments, such as fasting that only normal cells can quickly respond to."

Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-02/uosc-fwc020212.php

Source:
http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter/latest_rss_feed.cfm

Take a Look at the New Organ Mprize Site

Posted on by

You folk should take the time to look over the recently launched New Organ Mprize website. It's an attractive initiative of the Methuselah Foundation, and you'll find a fair amount of motivational content there on the subject of growing complex organs for transplant:

Imagine a future where no one has to suffer and die while waiting for an organ that never arrives. New Organ funds that future. With your help, everyone who needs an organ can have one custom made for them from their own cells.

A crowd funded prize to award the team that creates the first complex organ - heart, lung, pancreas, liver, or kidney - from a person's cells.

Banking: Preserve a complex organ for 30 days. Thousands die because the best we can do is less than a day.

Engineering: Build a complex whole organ from a person's cells, transplant it, and have it function for two years.

If you support these goals, then I note that there is currently a matching fund for donations: a pledge drive to raise the first $200,000 by the end of March. They have raised more than $45,000 in pledges this year - so do your part and help! In a world in which a Kickstarter project can pull in a million dollars for an iPhone widget, I'd like to think that it's also possible to rapidly raise a few hundred thousand dollars for a cause that actually matters.

As we walk the road of life, ever more set upon by subtle decay and damage along the way, our health and remaining life expectancy becomes ever more dependent on the state of medical technology. It would be good to wake up twenty years from now knowing that you had made a reasonable contribution in those past decades towards helping ensure your own life and health. When we get to the point in old age at which we need, as a matter of life and death, futuristic tissue engineering and regenerative medicine that can rebuild us from the inside, we'll only have ourselves to blame if it is not yet developed and deployed. The course ahead for the science of human rejuvenation and regeneration is very clear, and whether or not it happens is largely a matter of money and will - how many people are persuaded to work on it, and how greatly are they funded.

So do your part to help! It's not as though you have anything to lose.

Source:
http://www.longevitymeme.org/newsletter/latest_rss_feed.cfm