Stem Cells to Treat Heart Attacks

I am glad to learn that there are some Phase 2 studies being done for stem cell therapies. After the great hype by stem cell research, it is time we see some useful applications. And this is from adult stem cells which makes most of the controversies about embryonic stem cells moot.

Stem cell therapies for hearts inching closer to wide use

By Elizabeth Landau, CNN

December 18, 2009 9:34 a.m. EST

Dr. Joshua Hare at the University of Miami works on stem cell therapies for heart attack patients.

(CNN) -- If you've just had your first heart attack, doctors may one day be able to reverse the damage done with stem cell therapy.

An intravenous method of injecting stem cells into patients who had experienced heart attacks within the previous 10 days suggested that this method works to repair -- not just manage -- heart damage, a recent study found.

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Timely Information on Stem Cells

Some interesting updates about stem cell research especially as we look to a new era of scientific research under a new US President.

But today the field encompasses far more than just embryonic and adult stem cells; it has expanded into the broader field of regenerative medicine, and Melton's lab at Harvard is at the vanguard, bringing the newest type of stem cells, which do not rely on embryos at all, closer to the clinic, where patients will actually benefit. Last summer, Melton stunned the scientific community with yet another twist, finding a way to generate new populations of cells by reprogramming one type of fully mature cell so it simply became another, bypassing stem cells altogether.

read more

Related

Graphic

The Science of Stem Cells

Stories

• Cautious Optimism for the First Stem-Cell Human Trial
• Stem Cells: Brave New World
• Stem Cells: The Hope And The Hype

More Related

• A Leap Forward for Stem Cells
• Cautious Optimism for the First Stem Cell Human Trial Approved by the FDA
• Why Harvard Is Recruiting Egg Donors for Stem Cell Studies

Timely Information on Stem Cells

Some interesting updates about stem cell research especially as we look to a new era of scientific research under a new US President.

But today the field encompasses far more than just embryonic and adult stem cells; it has expanded into the broader field of regenerative medicine, and Melton's lab at Harvard is at the vanguard, bringing the newest type of stem cells, which do not rely on embryos at all, closer to the clinic, where patients will actually benefit. Last summer, Melton stunned the scientific community with yet another twist, finding a way to generate new populations of cells by reprogramming one type of fully mature cell so it simply became another, bypassing stem cells altogether.

read more

Related

Graphic

The Science of Stem Cells

Stories

• Cautious Optimism for the First Stem-Cell Human Trial
• Stem Cells: Brave New World
• Stem Cells: The Hope And The Hype

More Related

• A Leap Forward for Stem Cells
• Cautious Optimism for the First Stem Cell Human Trial Approved by the FDA
• Why Harvard Is Recruiting Egg Donors for Stem Cell Studies

False Claims for Stem Cell Therapies

Recently I have noticed that there are more and more claims for unproven stem cells therapies. I know of a person in Kuala Lumpur who is using 'stem cells' to cure Downs syndrome. On Tuesday I sat through a hour long lecture by a small 'stem cell' therapy company trying to interest a major healthcare organisation on the benefits of stem cell research.

I am glad that the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) task force has developed a new Guidelines for the Clinical Translation of Stem Cells which discusses core principles that should guide the responsible transition of basic stem cell research into appropriate clinical applications.

And here is an article from Cell Stem Cell journal which examines the marketing of unproven stem cell therapies.

Despite the immature state of stem cell medicine, patients are seeking and accessing putative stem cell therapies in an “early market” in which direct-to-consumer advertising via the internet likely plays an important role. We analyzed stem cell clinic websites and appraised the relevant published clinical evidence of stem cell therapies to address three questions about the direct-to-consumer portrayal of stem cell medicine in this early market: What sorts of therapies are being offered? How are they portrayed? Is there clinical evidence to support the use of these therapies? We found that the portrayal of stem cell medicine on provider websites is optimistic and unsubstantiated by peer-reviewed literature.

read more

Let the buyers beware.


.

False Claims for Stem Cell Therapies

Recently I have noticed that there are more and more claims for unproven stem cells therapies. I know of a person in Kuala Lumpur who is using 'stem cells' to cure Downs syndrome. On Tuesday I sat through a hour long lecture by a small 'stem cell' therapy company trying to interest a major healthcare organisation on the benefits of stem cell research.

I am glad that the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) task force has developed a new Guidelines for the Clinical Translation of Stem Cells which discusses core principles that should guide the responsible transition of basic stem cell research into appropriate clinical applications.

And here is an article from Cell Stem Cell journal which examines the marketing of unproven stem cell therapies.

Despite the immature state of stem cell medicine, patients are seeking and accessing putative stem cell therapies in an “early market” in which direct-to-consumer advertising via the internet likely plays an important role. We analyzed stem cell clinic websites and appraised the relevant published clinical evidence of stem cell therapies to address three questions about the direct-to-consumer portrayal of stem cell medicine in this early market: What sorts of therapies are being offered? How are they portrayed? Is there clinical evidence to support the use of these therapies? We found that the portrayal of stem cell medicine on provider websites is optimistic and unsubstantiated by peer-reviewed literature.

read more

Let the buyers beware.


.

Trachea from Adult Stem Cells

From Christianity Today liveblog
November 20, 2008 12:32PM
Adult Stem Cells Score Again
A trachea engineered from bone marrow stem-cells makes ethical research more appealing.
Susan Wunderink


Claudia Castillo, whose lungs had been ravaged by tuberculosis, has a new trachea. She made it herself . . . sort of.


Doctors in Spain took stem-cells from Claudia Castillo's bone marrow and had them form a section of trachea based on the trachea of an organ donor. The scientists transplanted the 2.75-inch piece and published the results in The Lancet:

The graft immediately provided the recipient with a functional airway, improved her quality of life, and had a normal appearance and mechanical properties at 4 months. The patient had no anti-donor antibodies and was not on immunosuppressive drugs.
The results show that we can produce a cellular, tissue-engineered airway with mechanical properties that allow normal functioning, and which is free from the risks of rejection.

Castillo is the first person to have an engineered trachea transplant, The Guardian says. She has had her new windpipe for several months without immunosuppressants—a breakthrough in surgery.

Besides giving hope to those who need transplants, Castillo’s case is also important to the debate over whether to allow stem-cell research which destroys embryos.

"Engineering new tissues and organs from stem cells has long been a goal of researchers, because it would help overcome a chronic shortage of donor organs.” NPR says. “But controversies over the source of stem cells have slowed research in the United States."

However the transplant, rather than highlighting limitations, is another victory for ethical (and legal) stem-cell research. In its Q&A on stem-cells, CNN says “In the past, because adult stem cells were considered stuck in their ways, the focus had been on embryonic cells but now scientists and doctors will be wanting to see if adult cells can be used to treat a wider range of conditions.”



.

Trachea from Adult Stem Cells

From Christianity Today liveblog
November 20, 2008 12:32PM
Adult Stem Cells Score Again
A trachea engineered from bone marrow stem-cells makes ethical research more appealing.
Susan Wunderink


Claudia Castillo, whose lungs had been ravaged by tuberculosis, has a new trachea. She made it herself . . . sort of.


Doctors in Spain took stem-cells from Claudia Castillo's bone marrow and had them form a section of trachea based on the trachea of an organ donor. The scientists transplanted the 2.75-inch piece and published the results in The Lancet:

The graft immediately provided the recipient with a functional airway, improved her quality of life, and had a normal appearance and mechanical properties at 4 months. The patient had no anti-donor antibodies and was not on immunosuppressive drugs.
The results show that we can produce a cellular, tissue-engineered airway with mechanical properties that allow normal functioning, and which is free from the risks of rejection.

Castillo is the first person to have an engineered trachea transplant, The Guardian says. She has had her new windpipe for several months without immunosuppressants—a breakthrough in surgery.

Besides giving hope to those who need transplants, Castillo’s case is also important to the debate over whether to allow stem-cell research which destroys embryos.

"Engineering new tissues and organs from stem cells has long been a goal of researchers, because it would help overcome a chronic shortage of donor organs.” NPR says. “But controversies over the source of stem cells have slowed research in the United States."

However the transplant, rather than highlighting limitations, is another victory for ethical (and legal) stem-cell research. In its Q&A on stem-cells, CNN says “In the past, because adult stem cells were considered stuck in their ways, the focus had been on embryonic cells but now scientists and doctors will be wanting to see if adult cells can be used to treat a wider range of conditions.”



.

The Stem Cell Debate

Ted Peters, 2007, The Stem Cell Debate, Minneapolis, MI: Fortress Press

Ted Peters teaches systematic theology at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary and the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California. He is an associate of the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences and is the co-editor of the center's journal Theology and Science.

Peters gives a good overview of the stem cell debate by framing the discussion into three frameworks:

(1) The embryo protection framework

The moral status of the ex vivo embryo (not implanted) and the principle of non-maleficience are central

(2) The nature protection framework

The fear that we may cross the line to manipulate genetics as in 'playing God'

(3) The medical benefits framework

Beneficience that puts relief of human suffering as the core of its reasoning

It is out of these three frameworks that a fourth will arise-The research standards framework which will essentially be government policies informed by the other three frameworks.

Peters essentially calls for more theologically informed ethicists to help people make the right decisions.

.

The Stem Cell Debate

Ted Peters, 2007, The Stem Cell Debate, Minneapolis, MI: Fortress Press

Ted Peters teaches systematic theology at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary and the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California. He is an associate of the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences and is the co-editor of the center's journal Theology and Science.

Peters gives a good overview of the stem cell debate by framing the discussion into three frameworks:

(1) The embryo protection framework

The moral status of the ex vivo embryo (not implanted) and the principle of non-maleficience are central

(2) The nature protection framework

The fear that we may cross the line to manipulate genetics as in 'playing God'

(3) The medical benefits framework

Beneficience that puts relief of human suffering as the core of its reasoning

It is out of these three frameworks that a fourth will arise-The research standards framework which will essentially be government policies informed by the other three frameworks.

Peters essentially calls for more theologically informed ethicists to help people make the right decisions.

.