“Latest Stem Cells News”

Transplanting stem cells from one’s own bone marrow (autologous stem cell transplants) improves the symptoms of muscular sclerosis (MS), and in some cases the neurological disease actually regressed. These are the encouraging results obtained from a small study performed on 21 remittent MS patients by a group from the Northwestern University School of Medicine in Chicago and published in Lancet Neurology. “All of the patients,” said the neurologists, “witnessed an improvement in their conditions three years after the stem cell transplants were performed. Of these, 81pct benefited from visible progress, measured in terms of the scale of their disability.”

With these “encouraging” results, the researchers decided to perform another study involving more patients, and compared their results with traditional treatments. The experiment involved the removal and freezing of bone marrow after treating the marrow with drugs to remove the lymphocytes of the immune system which are responsible for attacking nerve system fibers in MS patients.

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Adult stem cells are the future of the battle against multiple sclerosis, according to the Italian Multiple Sclerosis Association (AISM) in the latest edition of ‘Una mela per la vita’ (‘An Apple for Life’) over the past two days, aiming to collect funds for scientific research.   The AISM has invested a part of the proceeds from the past years into the possible use of undifferentiated cells, today as a legitimate part of future therapies.

Experimenting on the use of mesechymal stem cells on animal tissue is a research group of the Neurological Clinic of the University of Genoa, led by Antonio Uccelli.  According to Uccelli, this therapy can “immunomodulate and provide neuroprotection against autoimmune attacks and favor cell trophism during sickness.”  The neurologist warned:  “Despite expectations from the sick and the secular community for both regenerative medicine and adult stem cells, they have not shown to be effective against nerve damage.” Professor Uccelli spoke about the future regarding experimentation of cellular therapy on humans:  “Perhaps within a year,” he responded.

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A biopolymer could aid in the regrowing of nerves induced by the use of stem cells according to a new research project that gives hope to people who have been in an accident and have lost the use of one or more limbs. The procedure will enter into clinical testing in January after animal testing has been completed.
The Experimental Neurological Institute (INSPE), founded in 2005 at San Raffaele Hospital of Milan became operational with the inauguration of more than 1,200 square meters of lab space entirely dedicated to general and clinical research therapies for serious neurological diseases, like multiple sclerosis, strokes, spinal trauma, and peripheral neuropathy.
Director Giancarlo Comi, the head of the Department of Neurology at San Raffaele said, “Until now, when trying to induce nerves to grow back we were using veins that had the defect of being empty internally.”

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Spinal cord injuries, resulting in permanent disability or paralysis in most cases, account for around eleven thousand new cases in the US, annually. Due to the lack of effective treatment strategies, it is considered as the most devastating of all traumatic conditions. Now, a recent study published in the journal Stem Cells reports that activation of ependymal stem/progenitor cells from injured spinal cord (epSPCi), using endogenous stem cell-associated mechanisms, may aid in rescuing neurological function, thereby reversing paralysis associated with spinal cord injuries.

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Bone marrow stem cells self transplant can reduce Multiple Sclerosis (MS) symptoms, and make the disease regress in some cases.
These are the hopeful results from a research on 21 patients diseased by MS, made by the Chicago Northwestern University School of Medicine and published on Lancet Neurology. “Since 3 years from self transplant all the patients watch their conditions better.”

Since these results, doctors decided to make a bigger research involving more MS diseased people and comparing new therapy’s results with olds’ ones.
The experiment is about taking marrow stem cells and then treating them to remove ill lymphocytes which attack nerve fibers and then causing MS.

Stem cells are ready to create a ‘correct’ immune system and transplant begins after this process. “Time factor” is the nodal point for stem effectiveness because “operating soon we can make the most of the body’s self-regeneration, which can be lost in the long run”. Anyway scientists say also “it’s not the final cure to MS”.

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Sir Martin Evans

Stem cells could aid in treating muscular sclerosis. Animal experiments have demonstrated that it is possible to stop the aggressive, chronic inflammatory response against the myelin sheath that covers nerve cells, whose destruction leads to the devastating effects of the disease, said Giancarlo Comi, the head of the Experimental Neurology Institute of the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University. A three-day meeting, which began in Stresa, on the most recent progress regarding stem cells was opened by Nobel Prize winner Martin Evans and also included some of the most important experts on the subject in the country.

Comi specified that these cells are able to act against multiple sclerosis in two ways: not only are they able to stop inflammation, but they are also aggregate in the locations in which they are acting, keeping the entire area under control.

“It was thought that stem cells were only able to repair tissues, but it has been observed that they also act on the immune system.” The neurologist also cited work by Milan researcher Gianvito Martino, which “has completed the preliminary phase and is now ready for the first clinical study on the applications of stem cells against multiple sclerosis. A study will also be done to establish the doses that can guarantee successful treatment without causing any damage on patients with serious spinal injuries. This study will provide us with information on efficiency, which will be the focus of another study that will begin at the end of the year.”

The conference in Stresa gathered the top researchers in Italy in the stem cell field, with experts on neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular diseases, assisted reproduction, leukemia, and lymphoma.

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