Stem Cells 101 – Discussion Format (Long!)

* Stem Cells 101 *

This education on stem cells is written in the form of a discussion.  Tom is the classic adult stem cell naysayer and he questions their abilities and potential.  My responses are in CAPS for the most part.  Tom’s statements are in red.

———————————————

Tom begins:
Adult stem cells have been studied and funded for over 45 years.
Embryonic stem cells have been studied under drastically restricted
conditions for only ten years, with materials compromised by mouse DNA
and therefore useless to human research. All federal funding for ESCr
was eradicated in 2001.

BOTH ASC AND ESC WERE DISCOVERED IN THE 1960’s:
ASC HISTORY OF DISCOVERY:
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Stem-cell#_note-0
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Stem-cell#_note-1

ESC HISTORY OF DISCOVERY:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embryonic_stem_cell#cite_note-1

ASC WERE USED PRIMARILY IN BONE MARROW TRANSPLANTS AND THEY WERE NEVER STUDIED FOR ANY OTHER PURPOSE UNTIL ~1998. 1998 WAS ALSO THE YEAR THAT DR. THOMSON FIRST ISOLATED AN EMBRYONIC STEM CELL FROM A HUMAN AND THIS WAS THE TRUE START OF EMBRYONICS RESEARCH. AS FOR THE FEDERAL FUNDING…IN A WORLD THIS VARIED AND AMAZING, YOU MUST REALIZE THAT THERE IS GREAT HUBRIS AND FOLLY TO ONLY CONSIDER MEDICAL FUNDING AND ADVANCEMENTS IN ONE COUNTRY. MORE ON THAT LATER.

Comparing the two has all the rational sense of comparing the reading
level of a college-educated 45-year-old with that of a 10-year-old who
has been denied any reading Material since before her third birthday.

I CAN’T AGREE. EMBRYONICS ARE A 40 YEAR OLD STUDENT WHO HAS NEVER READ, DOES NOT READ NOW, AND WON’T BE READING WHEN HE IS 50. EVEN DR THOMSON, THE “FATHER OF EMBRYONICS”, WHO I PERSONALLY BELIEVE IS A GREAT MAN AND A GREAT SCIENTIST, HAS STATED NUMEROUS TIMES THAT ANY POTENTIAL CURES FROM ESC ARE AT LEAST 10 AND AS MUCH AS 30 YEARS OUT. THE ONLY WAY THAT 50 YEAR OLD STUDENT MIGHT READ IF HE FIRST CURES CANCER BECAUSE,
MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, ESC TURN TUMOROUS AFTER THEY DO WHAT THEY WERE MANIPULATED TO DO. ALSO, HE WOULD HAVE TO GO ON A SEVERE REGIME OF IMMUNOSUPPRESSIVE DRUGS IN ORDER TO OFFSET THE HIGH RISK OF REJECTION.

Adult stem cells have generated NINE federally-approved treatments,
all to mitigate problems created by other treatments, such as
chemotherapy, for the actual diseases. Adult stem cells have never
“cured” anything.

“NEVER CURED ANYTHING…NEVER ‘CURED’ ANYTHING?”

YOU STRESS THE WORD CURED. IS THIS A SEMANTIC ISSUE WITH YOU? FOR THE SAKE OF ARGUMENT I WILL ASSUME YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THE WORD CURED. MAYBE WE CAN REVISE THE TERM CURED AND FIND MORE SUITABLE AND AGREEABLE LANGUAGE. HOW ABOUT SUCCESSFULLY TREATED? TREATED WITH BENEFICIAL OUTCOME? OR PRODUCED THERAPEUTIC BENEFITS FOR HUMAN PATIENTS? IF THAT IS SEMANTICALLY MORE TO YOUR LIKING THEN WE CAN LOOK AT THE RIGOROUS PEER-REVIEWED ARTICLES THAT SHOW APPLICATIONS OF ADULT STEM CELLS THAT HAVE PRODUCED THERAPEUTIC BENEFITS FOR HUMAN PATIENTS.

HERE’S A LIST, GRANTED IT’S AN ABBREVIATE SAMPLE SELECTION FROM A LARGER LIST BUT IT IS A PLACE TO START. IT IS ENTITLED:  “PEER-REVIEWED REFERENCES SHOWING APPLICATIONS OF ADULT STEM CELLS THAT PRODUCE THERAPEUTIC BENEFIT FOR HUMAN PATIENTS”

IT CONTAINS ARTICLES ON ADULT STEM CELL STUDIES THAT WERE PUBLISHED IN PEER REVIEWED JOURNALS LIKE

• THE JOURNAL OF AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOC.
• THE BRITISH JOURNAL OF HAEMATOLOGY
• THE NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE

http://www.stemcellresearch.org/facts/asc-refs.pdf

THESE STUDIES DOCUMENT CONTROLLED CLINICAL APPLICATIONS OF ASC THAT HAVE ‘PRODUCED THERAPEUTIC BENEFIT FOR HUMAN PATIENTS’. THESE STUDIES ADDRESS THE BENEFITS IN TREATMENTS OF 73 DISEASES. THIS LIST IS FROM APRIL, 2007, SO THE UPDATED VERSION IS MUCH LONGER.

IF INSTEAD WE CHOOSE TO IGNORE THE QUESTION OF THE SEMANTIC ISSUE AND JUST LOOK AT TREATMENT RESULTS, YOU WOULD FIND MANY PEOPLE WHO DISAGREE WITH YOUR STATEMENT THAT “ADULT STEM CELLS HAVE NEVER CURED ANYTHING”. TO START, YOU WOULD HAVE A VERY HARD TIME CONVINCING THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE:

• THE HUNDREDS OF HEART PATIENTS WHO HAVE GONE FROM NYHA LEVEL 3 OR LEVEL 4 CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE (WAITING FOR A HEART TRANSPLANT) TO LIVING NEAR-NORMAL LIVES. (I’D BE HAPPY TO GET YOU SOME OF THEIR PHONE NUMBERS. THEY LOVE TO TELL PEOPLE HOW MUCH THEIR LIVES HAVE CHANGED.)
• THE CANADIAN PRO GOLFER WITH MS WHO IS NOW PLAYING GOLF AGAIN.
• THE 16 MS PATIENTS JUST ANNOUNCED IN THE PAST 24 HRS WHO HAVE BEEN GIVEN A NEW LIFE AT NORTHWESTERN.
• THE MANY CHILDHOOD CEREBRAL PALSY CHILDREN HELPED AT DUKE.
• THE SPINAL CORD INJURY PARALYTICS NOW WALKING BECAUSE OF DR CARLOS LIMA.
• THE DOZENS OF DIABETICS GIVEN NEW LIFE BY DR. VINA IN ARGENTINA AND THE DOZENS OF DIABETICS SAVED FROM AMPUTATION BY ADULT STEM CELLS ON FOUR CONTINENTS.
• THE STROKE VICTIMS GIVEN RELIEF FROM PARALYSIS IN GERMANY, CHINA, RUSSIA, AND LATIN AMERICA.

AND THERE’S MORE. HERE ARE PAGES AND PAGES AND PAGES OF MORE ADULT STEM CELL SUCCESSES -
http://www.frc.org/insight/adult-stem-cell-success-stories-2008-update-july-december

OR YOU CAN CHECK OUT THESE 210 EXAMPLES -
http://donmargolis.com/blog/category/victories/

I ALSO HAVE AN ISSUE WITH YOUR ASSERTION:

“Adult stem cells have generated NINE federally-approved treatments, all to
mitigate problems created by other treatments, such as chemotherapy,
for the actual diseases.”

WHILE YOU ARE ONCE AGAIN ONLY LOOKING IN THE UNITED STATES…LET’S IGNORE THAT FOR THE MOMENT AND JUST ADDRESS YOUR STATEMENT AS IT STANDS. YOU ARE CORRECT THAT ASC HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL IN MITIGATING THE COMPLICATIONS CREATED BY OTHER TREATMENTS, SUCH AS CHEMOTHERAPY…BUT IF YOU GO TO THE N.I.H. SITE AND LOOK UP THE NUMBER OF CLINICAL TRIALS WITH ADULT STEM CELLS, YOU WILL SEE 2,311 CLINICAL STUDIES.
http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?term=ADULT+STEM+CELL

MOST OF THESE 2,311 ARE DIRECTLY FOR THE TREATMENT OF DISEASES AND NOT, AS YOU CLAIM, TO MITIGATE PROBLEMS CREATED BY OTHER TREATMENTS. YOUR STATEMENT IS DEMONSTRABLY INCORRECT. WHILE MANY ARE ONGOING, A QUICK GLANCE THROUGH THE FIRST 200 STUDIES ALONE SHOWS OVER 30 STUDIES WHICH ARE ALREADY COMPLETED, MOST OF WHICH HAVE POSITIVE RESULTS. ALSO, THE USDA HAS DONE 114 STUDIES THAT UTILIZE KEYWORD: ADULT STEM CELL. THERE HAVE NOT BEEN MERELY NINE FEDERALLY FUNDED STUDIES; DEPENDING ON YOUR SCREENING CRITERIA, THE NUMBER IS IN THE HUNDREDS OR THOUSANDS.

WITH SO MANY POSITIVE STUDIES AND SUCCESSFUL TREATMENTS AROUND THE WORLD, WHO IS TO BLAME IF THE U.S. IS LACKING IN ADULT STEM CELL TREATMENTS? THE STUDIES ARE THERE, THE RESULTS ARE IN AND THE PROOF OF BENEFIT IS THERE. ADULT STEM CELLS HAVE VERIFIED THEIR TREMENDOUS CAPABILITY TO TREAT IN STUDY AFTER STUDY AND IN WELL OVER 1500 PEER-REVIEWED PUBLISHED SCIENTIFIC PAPERS. IF WE AS A COUNTRY HAVE FAILED TO USE THESE STUDIES TO DEVELOP TREATMENTS, GO AHEAD AND BLAME SOMEONE. GO AHEAD AND SCREAM FOR CHANGE FROM THE ROOFTOPS. BUT YOU CAN NOT BLAME ADULT STEM CELLS.

Embryonic stem cells have the potential to do everything ASC can, as
well as regenerate damaged tissues in ANY part of the human body.
Overseas testing with ESC have been able to grown human heart tissue
inside a rat, and regenerated damaged optic nerves in chicks.

“OVERSEAS” EMBRYONIC RESEARCHERS, SOME OF THE GREATEST MINDS IN SCIENCE, HAVE ALREADY BEEN RESEARCHING AND TRYING TO DEVELOP TREATMENTS FROM ESC FOR 10 YEARS. THEY HAVE BEEN INCREDIBLY WELL FUNDED BUT THEY UNFORTUNATELY DON’T HAVE A SINGLE ‘CURED’ HUMAN TO SHOW FOR IT. THESE SCIENTISTS HAVE MY COMPLETE ADMIRATION, THEY HAVE BEEN FACED WITH A DAUNTING TASK AND THEIR EFFORTS ARE VERY VALUABLE AND COMMENDABLE. WE HAVE LEARNED A GREAT DEAL FROM THEM.

IT IS ONLY UNFORTUNATE THAT, IN REGARD TO HUMAN TREATMENTS AND THROUGH NO FAULT OF THEIR OWN, THEY PICKED THE SLOW HORSE TO RIDE. POINT OF INTEREST: MANY OF THESE BRILLIANT ESC SCIENTISTS ARE ABANDONING THEIR EMBRYONIC RESEARCH AND ARE NOW DOING RESEARCH WITH ASC DUE TO THE DOCUMENTED HISTORY OF ASC SUCCESS.

Adult stem cells do work. Embryonic stem cells WILL work. Is anybody
getting this? The argument that “there’s no way to reach China by
sailing west, so let’s not even TRY” isn’t scientific. Granovsky isn’t
a scientist, he isn’t interested in looking for answers, he’s pushing
a political agenda based in ideological ignorance and personal
selfishness…

YOU ARE CORRECT ON TWO POINTS. I AM NOT A SCIENTIST AND I AM NOT LOOKING FOR ANSWERS. AN ANSWER IS DEFINED AS “a spoken or written reply or response to a question, request, letter, etc.” BY DEFINITION, AN ANSWER CAN BE RIGHT OR WRONG. ANSWERS CAN ALSO BE GIVEN NOW OR IN TEN YEARS. WHAT I AM LOOKING FOR IS A SOLUTION. A SOLUTION IS DEFINED AS “the act of solving a problem, question, etc.” THERE IS A PROBLEM HERE AND RATHER THAN AN ANSWER, I WANT A SOLUTION.

HERE IS THE PROBLEM:
IN 2005 THERE WERE 2,448,000 DEATHS IN THE U.S.
4 OF THE TOP 6 KILLERS WERE:

• HEART DISEASE (652,000 DEATHS)
• CANCER (559,000 DEATHS)
• STROKE (143,000 DEATHS)
• DIABETES (75,000 DEATHS)

THERE WERE A TOTAL OF 1,429,000 DEATHS IN 2005 FROM THESE 4 DISEASES AND THERE ARE RENOWNED STEM CELL TREATMENT CENTERS AROUND THE WORLD THAT HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFULLY TREATING PATIENTS WITH THESE DISEASE FOR YEARS. AROUND THE WORLD, PEOPLE WITH THESE DISEASE ARE ACTIVELY RECEIVING ASC TREATMENTS AND BENEFITING FROM THEM.

HOW MANY OF THOSE 1,429,000 DEATHS IN THE U.S. COULD HAVE BEEN AVERTED WITH ASC TREATMENT? HOW MANY OF THOSE 1,429,000 LIVES IN THE U.S. COULD HAVE BEEN EXTENDED WITH ASC TREATMENT UNTIL OTHER TREATMENTS WERE AVAILABLE? WE’LL NEVER KNOW. MAYBE WE COULD HAVE SAVED 30% OF THOSE PEOPLE WITH ASC OR 428,700 PEOPLE PER YEAR. OVER 10 YEARS THAT MIGHT AMOUNT TO 4,287,000 PEOPLE SAVED.

• SAVING 10% = 142,900 PER YEAR OR 1,429,000 PEOPLE SAVED IN 10 YEARS.
• EVEN SAVING JUST 2% = 28,580 PEOPLE PER YEAR AMOUNTS TO 285,800 OVER 10 YEARS.

285,800 PEOPLE. THAT NUMBER MAY SEEM INSIGNIFICANT IN THE GRAND SCHEME OF THINGS, BUT ONLY UNTIL IT’S YOUR GRANDFATHER, AUNT, DAD OR CHILD WHOM IS DYING. THEN, THAT ONE EXTRA PERSON SAVED, THAT ONE LIFE EXTENDED, MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD. WILL YOU REALLY CHOOSE TO WAIT FOR A POTENTIAL ESC TREATMENT WHEN IT’S A MEMBER OF YOUR FAMILY WHO IS DYING? WILL YOU WAIT WHEN IT IS YOU WHO IS THE VICTIM OF A DISEASE WHICH IS TREATABLE WITH ASC BUT ONLY OUTSIDE OF THE U.S.?

THE SOLUTION I WANT IS FOR TREATMENTS TO BE AVAILABLE TO THE MILLIONS IN THE U.S. WHO ARE DYING FROM DISEASES THAT ARE BEING SUCCESSFULLY TREATED IN MANY OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD TODAY. LIKE VERUCA SALT, I WANT IT NOW! TOM SAYS I AM MOTIVATED BY A TWISTED POLITICAL AGENDA, IGNORANCE AND SELFISHNESS. YOU TELL ME. HERE IS MY AGENDA FOR ALL TO SEE:

I WANT TO HELP HUMAN BEINGS WHO HAVE LIFE ALTERING, DEBILITATING OR THREATENING DISEASES AND I WANT TO HELP THEM NOW WITH ASC TREATMENTS. I DO NOT WANT TO WAIT TEN YEARS FOR A POSSIBLE ESC TREATMENT.

ASCs are not enough. They will continue to be used, but they don’t do
much. There are a few treatments…

ALL DUE RESPECT, THIS IS WHAT DRIVES ME CRAZY. HERE IS A LIST OF DISEASES BEING TREATED IN TREATMENT CENTERS AROUND THE WORLD – http://repairstemcells.org/DiseaseTreated.php

THE LIST OF DISEASES IS CURRENTLY OVER ONE HUNDRED (100!) AND GROWING ALL THE TIME…AND MANY OF THESE DISEASES ARE CONSIDERED INCURABLE IN THE U.S.…AND THESE TREATMENT CENTERS HAVE GONE THROUGH RIGOROUS EVALUATION AND ASSESSMENT TO INSURE THAT THEY ARE NOT SNAKE OIL SALESMEN AS SO MANY LIKE TO CLAIM.

TREATMENT CENTERS LIKE:

• The Center for Cellular Therapy & Cancer Immunotherapy in Tel Aviv
• Fundacion Don Robert Fernandez-Vina in Argentina, South America and El
• Salvador, Central America
• Regenocyte of Naples Florida and the Dominican Republic
• China Stem Cells
• The XCell-Center in Cologne, Germany
• Dr. Carlos Lima in Lisbon, Portugal
• Center for Immunotherapy and Cellular Technology in Russia
• Bangkok Heart Hospital

JUST BECAUSE THE U.S. IS 10+ YEARS BEHIND THE REST OF THE WORLD IN THE MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY OF STEM CELL TREATMENTS DOESN’T MEAN THE TREATMENTS AREN’T BOTH SUCCESSFUL AND AVAILABLE.

AS FOR WHETHER THE USE OF DISCARDED EMBRYOS IS A GOOD IDEA OR NOT…I HAVE NO INTEREST IN ARGUING THAT ISSUE AND I APOLOGIZE FOR IMPLYING A POSITION IN #3 OF MY POST. TO ME, THE ARGUMENTS AND MORAL ISSUES SURROUNDING THE USE OF EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS ARE IRRELEVANT.

ASC WORK NOW. ESC DON’T WORK NOW. THAT’S MY ONLY POINT.

WHY HAVE WE NOT EXECUTED IN THE U.S. WHAT IS ALREADY BEING PERFORMING IN MANY PARTS OF THE WORLD? WHY NOT USE WHAT HAS BEEN DOCUMENTED AS WORKING AND HAS BEEN WORKING EFFECTIVELY FOR YEARS?

I CAN’T CONVINCE YOU IF YOUR MIND IS MADE UP BUT THE EVIDENCE IS THERE.

OK. I’VE SAID MY PIECE. NOW I’D LIKE TO TAKE A MOMENT, TAKE A STEP BACK AND EXPRESS THE IRONY IMPLICIT IN THIS. DESPITE THIS SLIGHTLY CONTENTIOUS BACK AND FORTH, THE FACT REMAINS THAT OUR IDEOLOGIES ARE MUCH CLOSER THAN YOU MIGHT THINK. THE TRUTH IS, I WANT EMBRYONIC TREATMENTS TO WORK. THEY DON’T…NOW, BUT I WISH THEY DID.

I ALSO THINK THEY SHOULD BE RESEARCHED. DESPITE THE FACT THAT EMBRYONIC RESEARCH HAS BEEN PRIMARILY FRUITLESS FOR SCIENTISTS AROUND THE WORLD FOR THE LAST TEN YEARS, MAYBE THE U.S. SCIENTISTS CAN DISCOVER AMAZING NEW THINGS GIVEN ENOUGH TIME AND FUNDING. BECAUSE WE WILL NEVER KNOW WHAT ADVANCES AND BENEFITS THAT RESEARCH MAY BRING US.

EMBRYONICS MUST BE RESEARCHED BECAUSE IT DOESN’T MATTER IF WE ARE TALKING ABOUT SAILING WEST OR GOING TO THE MOON OR MARS OR EXPLORING BEYOND THE EDGES OF OUR GALAXY. EVEN IF WE HAVE NO GUARANTEES OF ADVANCEMENT FOR THE HUMAN RACE OR TECHNOLOGY, WE STILL MUST DO IT.

WE MUST DO IT “BECAUSE IT’S NEXT. BECAUSE WE CAME OUT OF THE CAVE AND WE LOOKED OVER THE HILL AND WE SAW FIRE; AND WE CROSSED THE OCEAN AND WE PIONEERED THE WEST AND WE TOOK TO THE SKY. THE HISTORY OF MAN IS ON A TIMELINE OF EXPLORATION AND THIS IS WHAT’S NEXT.” (10 extra pts if you can place the quote)

AND THEY CAN BE NOW BECAUSE iPS CELLS (INDUCED PLURIPOTENT STEM CELLS)  ARE MODIFIED ADULT STEM CELLS THAT HAVE ALL OF THE POTENTIAL OF EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS WITH NONE OF THE CONTROVERSY.

BUT PERSONALLY, I AM INTERESTED IN HELPING HUMAN BEINGS NOW.

HUMAN BEINGS WHO HAVE LIFE ALTERING, DEBILITATING OR THREATENING DISEASES.

I WANT TO HELP THEM NOW!
AND WE CAN…
AND WE AREN’T…
AND I DON’T WANT TO WAIT 10 OR 20 YEARS FOR A  POSSIBLE ESC TREATMENT.

THAT’S ALL.

Dolly the Sheep Shorn – Part 1 – Cloning 101

Dolly the Sheep & Clone

Cloning 101

Cloning is the process of creating living organisms identical to a single parent.  A clone is a group of organisms genetically identical individuals descended from the same parent (organism or cell) by some kind of asexual reproduction.  Some simple plants (such as tubers) and animals (such as sea anemones) reproduce naturally in this way, and identical twins are actually natural human clones, produced when the 2-cell-staged embryo split into two, known as embryo splitting.  Today, scientists clone by extracting the genetic material from a donor cell and putting it into an egg with its own genetic material removed.  The resulting embryo is allowed to develop, put into a surrogate mother, and come to term.  This is known as ‘nuclear transfer’, the method used in creating Dolly, the sheep that made news headlines around the world and achieved a major scientific breakthrough.  What made her so special was that she was cloned from adult differentiated cells, a way that was considered impossible at that time.

The purpose of cloning research is to change living organisms so as to improve people’s lives.  Recently, developments in genetic engineering, and cloning in particular, show a promising future, but also raise frightening prospects.  Here we will further explore all these aspects and the risks and possibilities in this ‘tool for mankind’. - http://library.thinkquest.org/C0122429/index1.htm

Stem Cells 101 – I thought stem cells were taken from newly formed embryos?

A curious reader asked:

I thought stem cells were taken from newly formed embryos?

——————————-

Dear curious reader,
There are 2 major kinds of stem cells.  There are embryonic stem cells and there are adult stem cells.  Both have the potential to improve patients’ lives by implanting them into the patient’s body to replace damaged or dead tissue. Both are ALREADY helping medical knowledge, such as drug development and understanding diseases in new ways.

EMBRYONIC stem cells (ESC) come from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst: the fertilized egg, called the zygote, divides and forms two cells; each of these cells divides again, and so on. Soon there is a hollow ball of about 150 cells called the blastocyst that contains two types of cells, the trophoblast and the inner cell mass. Embryonic stem cells are obtained from the inner cell mass.  Embryonic stem cells used in therapies are allogenic – they come from someone other then the patient.  Issues of rejection, like in transplants need to be addressed and most likely, embryonic stem cell recipients require heavy doses of immuno-suppressive drugs.

ADULT stem cells (ASC) come from a growing multitude of sources. First they were found in the bone marrow, then the blood, then certain fat cells, then nasal skin, then the dam broke and scientists seem to find a new source in the body every month. Umbilical cord stem cells are a type of adult stem cell although some give them their own subcategory.  ASC can be allogenic (from someone else) or autologous (from the patient’s own body and requiring no immuno-suppressive drugs).

The strongest allogenic stem cells seem to be derived from the placenta and the umbilical cords of healthy newborn babies, which can be frozen.  Milk teeth, the first set of a child’s teeth that  fall out and you put under their pillow are also an excellent source of stem cells.  Storing cord or placental or milk tooth stem cells at a stem cell bank can provide valuable stem cells for future treatments of the baby, a family member  or a stranger.

Embryonic stem cells (ESC) are thought to be more powerful than ASC because they can become any cell in the body. They come from very early in a pregnancy and are the by-products of abortions and fertility clinics.

New studies on ASC are showing that they can become virtually anything. Scientists recently turned adult skin stem cells into adult neuron stem cells. – http://repairstemcell.wordpress.com/2009/02/25/researchers-make-nerve-cells-from-new-stem-cells-science-reuters/

A decade of embryonic stem cell research has resulted in no human treatments and because the embryonic stem cells continue to divide beyond the scientist’s control, they can turn into tumors (as referenced in Kirsten’s original post).

Over a decade of adult stem cell treatments have given thousands improved health, extended lives, helped paraplegics to walk http://repairstemcell.wordpress.com/2009/02/10/spinal-cord-injury-sci-stem-cell-trials-japan-plays-catch-up/ , made a man with AIDs symptom free for 2 years http://repairstemcell.wordpress.com/?s=aids+symptom+2+years , the list goes on and on.  ASC are already helping improve and extend the lives of patients with dozens of “incurable” diseases,” 73 diseases when you count only US published scientific papers and well over 100 if you read all of the papers from outside the USA.

Hope that helped!
David Granovsky

http://repairstemcell.wordpress.com

To see the original post & question:

http://www.kirstensanford.com/2009/02/27/stem-cell-therapy-needs-global-regulation/

STEM CELLS 101

STEM CELL

http://repairstemcell.wordpress.com

AN INTRODUCTION TO STEM CELLS

Adult Stem Cells (ASC), have successfully helped in the treatment of many cancers, including leukemia, and a number of less common diseases for almost 40 years. In 1998, Prof. Doris Taylor (University of Minnesota’s Medtronic-Bakken Chair in Cardiac Repair & Director of the Center for Cardiovascular Repair) proved that ASC had the capability to help cure heart disease in rodents. In the years that followed, the successful utilization of stem cells in the treatment of a growing number of diseases has outpaced expectations and given hope to thousands.

Ten years of peer-reviewed publications in the world’s top medical journals illustrate the ability of ASC to produce therapeutic benefits in human patients. Expert doctors around the world are currently utilizing ASC to treat over one hundred serious health conditions and diseases. Patients with cancers, autoimmune diseases, immunodeficiency diseases, blood disorders (including anemias), metabolic disorders, ocular diseases, wounds and injuries, heart damage, neural degenerative disease and injury, liver disease and bladder disease can reduce their symptoms, increase their quality of life and in some cases can slow or even potentially halt the progress of their disease with ASC treatment.

“Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood.”
-Marie Curie

http://repairstemcell.wordpress.com

STEM CELLS 101 – a brief intro

STEM CELL

http://repairstemcell.wordpress.com

For an in depth explanation of the differences between adult, embryonic and iP stem cells and their treatment potential, click here: http://repairstemcell.wordpress.com/2009/03/17/stem-cells-101-discussion-format/

AN INTRODUCTION TO STEM CELLS

Adult Stem Cells (ASC), have successfully helped in the treatment of many cancers, including leukemia, and a number of less common diseases for almost 40 years. In 1998, Prof. Doris Taylor (University of Minnesota’s Medtronic-Bakken Chair in Cardiac Repair & Director of the Center for Cardiovascular Repair) proved that ASC had the capability to help cure heart disease in rodents. In the years that followed, the successful utilization of stem cells in the treatment of a growing number of diseases has outpaced expectations and given hope to thousands.

Ten years of peer-reviewed publications in the world’s top medical journals illustrate the ability of ASC to produce therapeutic benefits in human patients. Expert doctors around the world are currently utilizing ASC to treat over one hundred serious health conditions and diseases. Patients with cancers, autoimmune diseases, immunodeficiency diseases, blood disorders (including anemias), metabolic disorders, ocular diseases, wounds and injuries, heart damage, neural degenerative disease and injury, liver disease and bladder disease can reduce their symptoms, increase their quality of life and in some cases can slow or even potentially halt the progress of their disease with ASC treatment.

“Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood.”
-Marie Curie

Through years of involvement in stem cells I have come to know some of the top stem cell scientists and doctors in the world.   Ask me any questions about treatments that you have and I will either get an answer for you or show you how to get it yourself!

Obama Wrongly Claims Embryonic Stem Cell Research Will Cure Alzheimer’s

Obama Wrongly Claims Embryonic Stem Cell Research Will Cure Alzheimer’s

by Steven Ertelt -  LifeNews.com Editor -January 19, 2009

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — Over the weekend, incoming president Barack Obama talked about how he’ll make Congress overturn President Bush’s stem cell research policy. In his comments, Obama wrongly indicated embryonic stem cell research can cure Alzheimer’s even though scientists say that’s not the case.

via Obama Wrongly Claims Embryonic Stem Cell Research Will Cure Alzheimer’s.

Stem Cell Science Experts Release Letter Urging U.S. Commitment to all Avenues of Stem Cell Research

Stem Cell Science Experts Release Letter Urging U.S. Commitment to all Avenues of Stem Cell Research

“Stem cell research of all types urgently needs U.S. support,” an open letter from The International Society for Stem Cell Research and other leading scientists advocates.

Stem cell research of all types urgently needs U.S. support

Embryonic stem cell research, together with breakthroughs in iPS and adult stem cell technologies will together yield the insights that make medical advances possible

We need to ensure that researchers are equipped to use all fruitful innovations to probe the basic biomedical principles that underlie medical research and treatment

As members of the stem cell research community, our ultimate goal is curing illness and alleviating human suffering. As physicians and scientists, we face an urgent call to protect the principles of scientific freedom – not for the sake of science itself but for the sake of the patients we serve

We believe that science and society have a partnership: science to find out how nature works, and society to judge and regulate the operations of science. In California, where all kinds of stem cell research are allowed and funded, several levels of regulation protect patients and society at all stages of research and therapy.

It is in the best interests of our patients that we keep every promising avenue of stem cell research open

Deerfield, IL (PRWEB) October 21, 2008 — The International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) joined with other leading scientists to issue an open letter to reiterate the urgent need for U.S. support for all types of stem cell research. The Society is the world’s preeminent professional organization of stem cell researchers.

The letter is in response to critics who, the authors state, are using recent advances in adult stem cell research to advocate for restrictions on embryonic stem cell research. These scientists warn that efforts to favor one arm of stem cell research at the expense of another are based on unsound interpretations of scientific discoveries.

“Embryonic stem cell research, together with breakthroughs in iPS and adult stem cell technologies will together yield the insights that make medical advances possible,” said Dr. George Q. Daley, ISSCR past-president and associate director of the Stem Cell Program at Children’s Hospital Boston. “We need to ensure that researchers are equipped to use all fruitful innovations to probe the basic biomedical principles that underlie medical research and treatment,”

via Stem Cell Science Experts Release Letter Urging U.S. Commitment to all Avenues of Stem Cell Research.

Adult Stem Cells: New Hope for Curing Degenerative Diseases – Life Extension

New Hope for Curing Degenerative Diseases

By Denis Rodgerson, PhD, Ron Rothenberg, MD, FACEP, and Wayne A. Marasco, MD, PhD

The potential to heal once incurable degenerative diseases such as cancer or heart disease by regenerating cells that have failed or are about to fail is now within our grasp, thanks to the emergence of an exciting new field of medicine: regenerative medicine using adult stem cells.

Indeed, tissues such as heart muscle that were long thought to be non-renewable have now been shown to be regenerated through this novel therapy. By using adult stem cells, scientists have avoided the controversy that has stymied advanced embryonic stem cell research in the past. Adult stem cell therapy offers an unprecedented step forward in the history of medicine and the applications of this new form of regenerative medicine are potentially unlimited…

via Adult Stem Cells: New Hope for Curing Degenerative Diseases – Life Extension.

What’s all this about stem cells?

by Tom Shakespeare -9th February 2009

America is trialling it, Barack Obama is about to endorse it, Scottish doctors think it could cure a form of blindness, and a toddler is going all the way to China for it. Over the last month, it’s been hard to miss all the news stories about stem cell therapy. We know that therapies based on stem cells are likely to be extremely beneficial to all sorts of disabled people in the future, but where are we with it all right now? I think it’s time for a bit of a recap …

What is stem cell therapy?

Stem cells, magnified in extreme close-up

Stem cells are undifferentiated cells – lacking qualities that make them different or unique – which are capable of developing into any of the 200 different types of cell in the human body. They are derived from embryos, from the umbilical cord or, with greater difficulty, from the scarce stem cells in adults or children.

Stem cells can be used to grow tissues for transplantation – for example, heart muscle or brain cells or liver cells. They can also be used as models for disease, which can then be used in research – meaning better knowledge or less reliance on animal experimentation. This has recently been achieved for spinal muscular atrophy.

Who might be helped by these therapies?

People who have diseases or impairments which are caused by tissue damage or degeneration can potentially be helped by stem cell therapy. For example, people with diabetes, liver disease and Parkinson’s, maybe even people with spinal cord injury.

A new trial is exploring whether stroke survivors could benefit too, whilst the latest news suggests that stem cells from patients’ own bone marrow could help reverse the early signs of MS.

Most of these therapies are only at the stage of initial trials in humans – for example, studies on corneal blindness and spinal cord injury are just starting.

Does it work?

Stem cell treatments have been successful in treating Severe Combined Immune Deficiency (SCID) and a few other conditions in research settings. While stem cell therapy sounds good in theory, in practice it is very hard to grow specific cell types and control their growth safely. The children cured of SCID went on to contract a form of leukaemia. Research continues to understand why, and to improve safety and effectiveness.

When might therapies be available?

The first clinical trial of an embryonic stem cell therapy has just been authorised by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Clinical trials can take up to 10 years, so even if a therapy is shown to be successful, scientists or pharmaceutical companies then have to prove that it is safe. Animal trials have shown that therapies for spinal cord injury, muscular dystrophy and other conditions have great potential, but effective treatments are still a long way off. Therapies may be beneficial in the early days after a spinal cord injury, but not benefit those who have been injured for a long time.

What’s the ethical issue here?

Embryonic stem cell therapy depends on destroying embryos – usually surplus embryos from IVF treatment. Those who believe that life starts at conception will equate this to murder. The Vatican reaffirmed its opposition to embryonic stem cell research in December, but permits research using adult stem cells.

Another controversy is over somatic cell nuclear transfer, otherwise known as therapeutic cloning, which would enable stem cell tissues to be matched to the patient, but bring us closer to the possibility of reproductive cloning.

Under President Bush, creation of new embryonic stem cell lines was forbidden in America. President Obama is expected to permit a more liberal approach to research.

What’s the political issue?

For those who take a pure social model approach to disability, the problem for disabled people is not their impairment but the barriers and discrimination within society. Stem cell therapy is offered as a cure for disability, whereas activists often deny their need or desire for cure.

Moreover, promises of scientific breakthroughs and wonderful medical treatments have been made for over fifty years, and there is scepticism about the current stem cell hyperbole. Superman actor Christopher Reeve was so convinced that stem cell therapy would cure spinal cord injury that he said that barrier removal and disability rights was unnecessary. Most others disagree.

So is it just a load of hype?

There is definitely lots of media excitement about stem cell therapy, as well as the occasional irresponsible announcement from a scientist. There are also big commercial interests involved: stories of miraculous stem cell treatments in less regulated countries such as China, Thailand, India and Russia are questionable, with vulnerable consumers being charged an average of 21,500 dollars for unproven therapies.

In Britain, many parents have been encouraged to pay for their infant’s umbilical cord blood to be stored in private stem cell banks, with the hope that this might help with future disease. But scientists are sceptical as to whether the promised benefits will materialise.

But despite these negative stories, overall it is fair to say that leading scientists in the UK and US are responsible and very tightly regulated, and that many believe that ultimately this line of research will transform medicine.

You’ll see many more news stories in the months and years ahead, so stay tuned for more updates on ‘tailor made tissues’.

via BBC – Ouch! (disability) – Fact – What’s all this about stem cells?.

HEMATOPOIETIC STEM CELLS, INTERFERON & CANCER

INTERFERON

Stem cells: Deathly awakening by interferon

February 12, 9:38 PM

by Trina Hoaks, Science Examiner

After injuries with blood loss, the body quickly needs to restore the vital blood volume. This is accomplished by a special group of stem cells in the bone marrow. These hematopoietic stem cells remain dormant throughout their lives and are only awakened to activity in case of injury and loss of blood. Then they immediately start dividing to make up for the loss of blood cells. This has recently been shown by a group of scientists headed by Professor Andreas Trumpp of DKFZ.

Dormancy is an important protection mechanism of stem cells. First, it protects their genetic material from genetic alterations, which happen primarily during cell division. In addition, dormancy helps them escape attacks of many cytotoxins, which act only on dividing cells.

Scientists were still puzzling over which signaling molecules actually wake up stem cells from their dormancy. Andreas Trumpp and Marieke Essers from his team have now reported in Nature that interferon-alpha, a messenger substance of the immune system, acts like an alarm clock for hematopoietic stem cells. The scientists have thus shown for the first time that interferon-alpha can have a direct influence on the function of stem cells.

Interferon-alpha is released by immune cells when the organism is threatened by bacteria or viruses. The scientists triggered interferon production in mice by administering a substance that simulates a viral infection to the animals. Subsequently, there was a great increase in the division rate of hematopoietic stem cells. In control animals that were unable to process the interferon signals, the substance did not lead to an awakening of the stem cells.

The investigators obtained further proof of the effect of interferon-alpha using a drug called 5-fluorouracil, a cytotoxic substance frequently used for treating breast or bowel cancer. Dormant stem cells are resistant to the drug, which unfolds its effect only during division. However, if animals are given interferon-alpha prior to treatment with 5-fluorouracil, they die of anemia after a short time. This is because prior treatment with interferon forces quiescent stem cells into cell division, which sensitizes them for the effect of 5-FU and kills them. Thus, there are soon no more stem cells to keep up the supply of short-lived mature blood cells such as erythrocytes and blood platelets.

What researchers find particularly exciting about this finding is the prospect that the newly found working mechanism might help improve cancer treatment: “Using interferon-alpha, we might be able to wake up from dormancy not only hematopoietic stem cells but also tumor stem cells and, thus, break their frequently observed resistance to many anticancer drugs,” Andreas Trumpp speculates.

A clinical observation already suggests that this assumption is more than just wishful thinking: Patients suffering from a type of blood cancer called chronic myelogenous leukemia who are treated with a drug called Gleevec almost always relapse after drug treatment has ended. Several patients were given interferon-alpha prior to the Gleevec treatment. Surprisingly, these patients experienced long relapse-free phases without any medication. “We believe that the leukemia stem cells were awakened by the interferon administration and, thus, were sensitized to elimination by Gleevec,” Andreas Trumpp explains.