A world-first Australian medical therapy that uses stem cells to treat degenerative spinal disease has been approved for testing on patients in the U.S.

Using the treatment to replace painful bone grafts is the goal and hope of researchers.

The U.S. government awarded approval to an Australian biotechnology company for its adult stem cell treatment to be used in a major trial.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration allowed it to bypass the small phase-one human safety trial and move directly into a larger phase-two trial since the preliminary animal trials were so promising.

This marks the first time that adult stem cells will be used to treat spinal disc disease in a genetically unrelated patient

A shortage of neural stem cells in the brain was formerly thought to be the reason that older people exhibited a reduced capacity to learn and remember. However, new research reveals that the reduced ability may be caused by stem cells in brain dividing less frequently instead.

The findings suggest that by stimulating the stem cells’ ability to divide and produce new nerve cells, it may be possible to treat degenerative disorders, including dementia, depression, and Alzheimer

Earlier therapies for the potentially life-threatening condition, acute kidney failure, have been generally ineffective in treating the disease. But stem cell applications could help improve and protect kidney function in patients as new research reveals.

When kidneys concentrate urine and are unable to remove waste, acute renal failure is the consequence. The outlook for survival in patients is particularly grave when the kidney failure is caused by trauma or surgery.

“Acute renal failure is a common condition that affects up to 7 percent of hospitalized patients,” lead author Dr. Lorenza, Ph.D., of the Fondazione Policlinico in Milano, Italy, told Ivanhoe. “In intensive care units, mortality rate of the disease can be higher than 50 percent of patients.”

Stem cells obtained from full-term umbilical cord blood have characteristics that can stimulate tissue repair and the development of bone and cartilage. New research reveals that these mesenchymal stem cells can help patients recuperate more rapidly and avoid long-term kidney complications associated with tissue damage.

Researchers in Italy used a control solution of intravenous saline or cord blood mesenchymal stem cells to treat mice with acute renal failure. Evaluations were conducted on the mice prior to transplant in order to determine histology and renal function. When blood urea nitrogen, a waste by product that indicates kidney malfunction was measured in the rats, those that received stem cell treatment had much lower levels. A reduction in renal tissue damage was also observed in the mice that were treated with stem cells.

“We observed several renal parameters and saw we have less severe complications,” Dr. Lorenza said. “The tubular renal structure of the animals treated with mesenchymal stem cells is comparable to normal ones [animals].”

Researchers think these preliminary results are promising for future treatment of patients with acute renal failure.

“One of our conclusions is we believe one of the possible clinical treatments for this disease could be cord blood mesenchymal stem cells,” Dr. Lorenza said.

Although further research is still needed, Dr. Lorenza believes that mesenchymal stem cells would offer similar benefits to humans. It would be a safer and more effective treatment for renal failure.

Peripheral artery disease, or PAD, is a painful circulatory problem in the legs affecting almost 10 million Americans. A doctor from Indiana University School of Medicine is using adult stem cells to treat this disease, with the hope of helping millions.

According to IU sources, as part of an early-phase clinical trial, Dr. Martin has injected 15 PAD patients with stem cells extracted from their own bone marrow.

Found at the bulge of hair follicles, epidermal neural crest cells have the characteristics that combine some advantages of embryonic and adult stem cells. They can be expanded in culture, have a high degree of plasticity, and can be isolated at high levels of purity; all characteristics of embryonic stem cells. They are also comparable to adult stem cells because they are ethical unlike embryonic cells and are easily accessible through a minimally invasive procedure. A patient

In an effort to improve Parkinson’s disease symptoms, U.S. medical scientists claim that brain cells derived from neural stem cells can help.

A progressive loss of movement control characterizes the disease. In the study, which was conducted on mice, scientists discovered that the rodent’s brain continued to function normally rather than display the traits of Parkinson’s.

“We are very cautious but to us, it’s an indication that stem cells have promise for Parkinson’s disease,” says Dr. Cesario, neuroscientist at the Medical College of Georgia also the corresponding author of the study.

A neurotoxin was administered to destroy neurons that create dopamine, a key neurotransmitter in regards to movement control. The transplants were performed soon after says Dr. Cesario. A patient receiving treatment early in the disease process would be the most accurate duplication of the experiment in humans.

The researchers noted that the animals that received conventional treatment did not recover while those that received transplants regained control of their movement. Other animals gained partial recovery when given neurotrophic factors, called stem cell factors.

The stem cell factor protected cells in a dose-dependent fashion.

“The more stem cell factor, the better the protection,” Cesario says

Protection was further amplified when the cells were co-cultured with stem cells. Neuro-protection was significantly reduced when an antibody was used to block the stem cell factor.

“This again shows a combination of factors at work. It’s a synergistic effect,” says Cesario.

Even before symptoms start to show, Parkinson’s disease does a lot of damage to dopaminergic cells. The loss of these cells makes it difficult for individuals to move and, once they do move, it is abnormal and they can’t control the movement. Tremors are a common example.

A synthetic dopamine called L-dopa is the normal existing treatment. It tends to minimize symptoms for three to five years. Doses are increased since the drug becomes less effective as the disease progresses. The crescendo dosing can produce more dyskinesia (loss of controlled movement).

The Journal of Neuroscience (ANI) has published the research in its latest issue.

During the course of a person’s life, there is a certain part of the individual’s eye that continually renews itself. Under normal conditions, half the cells are replaced every two months. At unbelievable speeds of 60 to 80 mm per hour, the cells replicate and move across the surface of the eye. The cells are critical for the normal function of the cornea, vision, and comfort. These special cells are part of the corneal epithelium; the outermost layer, or “skin” of your cornea, which is composed of five to six layers of specialized cells.

Stem cells are a unique sub-population of cells. Corneal stem cells specifically, are located in the extreme periphery of the cornea. These cells are also called the limbal stem cells, since this region is called the limbus.

Stem cells are undifferentiated cells and they constitute only 0.5 to 10 per cent of total cell population. They are unique in that they have the capacity for constant renewal and are capable of self-replication throughout life.

The way to limbal stem cell transplantation is paved by the recognition of the importance of limbal stem cell function in the healing response of the cornea.

These important cells of the eye can be damaged by a multitude of diseases. Other causes include drug allergies, poorly fitted contact lenses, chemical or thermal injury, multiple surgeries, and some genetic disorders.

Using cells from the fellow eye of the same person (autograft) or from another individual (allograft), the procedure of limbal transplantation can be performed. These limbal cells can be obtained from an eye that has been donated after death as well. However, powerful immunosuppressive medication would need to be administered during the post operative period if the cells are harvested from another human being. This is to avoid immune rejection so that the limbal stem cells can survive in the patient’s eye.

A method using a very small two to four mm biopsy of healthy limbus is a recent development. The cells are encouraged to multiply and produce a large sheet about two cm in size while they are processed in a laboratory using special culture media. The damaged eye is then given a transplant with this newly grown tissue. The success rate to date has been good. The procedure is called ex vivo limbal stem cell replication.

Pterygium, which is the growth of conjunctive tissue onto the cornea, is another common condition in India given the high ultraviolet light exposure. This condition results in impairment of vision and poor cosmetic function. Limbal stem cells transplantation prevents the re-growth of the tissue and also provides for the localized stem cell deficiency.

Covering the innermost layer of the placenta is the amniotic membrane. Given its antimicrobial potential and ability to enhance wound healing, the amniotic membrane has been important in ocular reconstructive surgery. The membrane is stored after it is harvested from a willing donor during elective caesarian section birth. It is most commonly used in the cases of limbal stem cell deficiency and chemical injury.

Hematopoietic stem cells are part of more general stem cell transplantations. Specific conditions such as Lymphoma, Sickle Cell Anemia, Aplastic Anemia, Leukemia, and severe Immune Cell Deficiency.

Type I diabetes mellitus (pancreatic stem cells) and Parkinson’s disease (brain stem cells) are conditions that the future of stem cells research will focus on.

In conclusion, the transplantation of corneal limbal stem cells is an exciting advance in adult stem cell treatment. Corneal disorders have been poorly managed to date, and these new advances offers new hope to many patients who are visually challenged due to these disorders.

Chronic back pain could become a thing of the past thanks to a patients own stem cells. Treatment will be available in three years said a team of researchers from the University of Manchester.

The soft shock-absorbing discs which separate the vertebrae in the spine are being rebuilt using stem cells. The researchers are in route to perfecting the technique.

Affecting around 12 million in the UK, lower back pain is commonly caused by damage to these intervertebral discs (IVD’s).

The UK economy can potentially save as much as £5 billion a year if a treatment can effectively cure the problem.

Using mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from adult bone marrow to regenerate spinal discs, the new therapy was developed by Dr. Stephen.

Bone, fat, muscle, and cartilage are among the many different types of tissues that can be grown from the multipotent MSC class of stem cells.

Dr. Stephen has succeeded in turning MSCs into the cells which make up the gel-like nucleus pulposus (NP) tissue separating the vertebrae.

Full patient trials will immediately follow the pre-clinical trials which are planned for next year.

Dr. Stephen said: “Once we have extracted the bone marrow from the patient and have purified the MSCs, they will be grown in culture and our patented method of differentiation will be applied.

“They will then be embedded within a gel which can be implanted back into the patient.”

There is no possibility of the stem cells being rejected by the immune system since they are taken from the patient’s own body.

Similar to one already used for the treatment of cartilage defects, the gel is based on a natural collagen.

It is implanted using an arthroscope, a thin tube device slipped through a small incision in the back.

“There is no reason why a patient should not return home on the same day as the procedure, or the day after,” said Dr. Stephen.

“Once implanted, the differentiated MSCs would produce a new NP tissue with the same properties as the original and would both treat the underlying cause of the disease and remove the painful symptoms.”

A combination of painkillers, physiotherapy, or surgery, is the current medical treatment for low back pain.

Vertebrae are fused together or tissue is removed to relieve the pain in sever cases.

Since the current techniques do not solve the root cause of the problem, success is limited.

Dries, research and information manager at the charity BackCare said that, “this is a really exciting area of research and although it is still early days, the initial results look very promising.”

Degeneration and aging will be unraveled along with the other mysteries of life thanks to modern medicine. In Manila, a medical breakthrough has arrived with one of the latest developments in stem cell therapy.

Your body is in a constant state of renewal. The changes are occurring in your system even as you read this article. Inside the human body, cells renew, regenerate, and are born every single second.

Scientists have believed for quite some time now that when you die, the cells are not the same as when you were born.

So, why do we age if the natural process of the body is to remake itself? A team of stem cell biologists in Sweden are attempting to answer this question

It is suspected that stem cells age and their supply is exhausted. What happens if the supply is replenished? Enter stem cell therapy.

Our bodies are created from stem cells which are the fundamental building blocks of life. They develop into the different tissues of our body: bone, blood, nerve, muscle, organ, etc, and are formed at conception.

Injured tissue can be repaired by tapping the body’s stem cell reserves. However, the reserve becomes depleted since it is finite. Thus, we succumb to disease and aging as the regenerative power of the body decreases.

Bone marrow, peripheral blood, and fat are all sources of stem cells. The Russians were the first to collect stem cells from non-bone marrow sources. But the process raised ethical issues since the source was aborted fetuses.

Today, since it takes about five days to go through the process of harvesting bone marrow stem cells, a new approach has been tapped that is easier, just as effective, and non-controversial—Autologous Stem Cell Transplant.

This process was introduced in Manila by Dr. Florencio, who is a respected member of the medical community and a reputable senior plastic surgeon, along with an expert in regenerative medicine, Dr. Bill.

100cc’s of peripheral blood and fat are extracted from the body through mini-liposuction. The newly harvested inactive adult stem cells are incubated in stimulating growth factors derived from colostrums, which are the first liquid secretion of milk-producing organic cows in New Zealand.

Once 50 million stem cells are stimulated; the patient is infused with the isolated cells intravenously. Under local anesthesia, the procedure takes place in the operating room of a local hospital and lasts four hours. Three hours to incubate, stimulate, and infuse them back into the patient, with the other hour being occupied by the harvesting process.

The stem cells come from the individual and are returned to him/her, so there are no moral or religious issues involved.
Individuals with Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, cancer, arthritis, diabetes, and spinal cord injuries all stand to gain with this therapy.

In the case of an 80-year-old who has fewer tremors from Parkinson’s and now goes ballroom dancing, the results have been not only encouraging but astonishing. But it does not end with just one. Health enthusiasts, politicians, and high-profile businessmen that have received the treatment can now think faster and more clearly, their libidos have increased, and they have all gained a more youthful appearance.

A new medical breakthrough is being driven by the dynamic duo of Bill and Florencio. More extensive clinical studies are being planned for the near future.

Foreign patients are now flying to Manila to receive the benefits of the treatment.

“I chose to make Manila my headquarters because of its strategic location, ideal for medical tourism,” said Dr. Bill who was in Manila before for a World Health Organization project. “Filipino doctors are (also) among the finest in the world.” Specific study of stem cell therapy to ease pain and hasten wound-healing was allowed by working with the French Foreign Legion in Angola and Congo. Faster recovery and anti-aging results were observed.

But just how far back does the clock turn for stem cell patients? Right now, the number is five to ten years. But by improving the quality of their lives by making healthy decisions, the average human life expectancy can reach 120 without question.

Many individuals aspire to age gracefully, while others regardless of any health challenge, wish to improve the quality of their lives. But others are intrigued with the challenge of defying time itself.

So in the future, with advances in stem cell therapy, when someone asks the question, “how old are you?”

Your answer just may be, “I am as young as I want to be.”