A recent University of Florida study has found that the symptoms of type 1 diabetes are significantly improved in children after receiving a stem cell transplant using their own cord blood. The study followed eleven children between the ages of two and seven during a span of two years. Seven of the children received autologous stem cell infusions using their own cord blood. The researchers found that the children who received these stem cell transplants required an average of 35% less insulin and had higher levels of regulatory immune cells in the blood. All children had been newly diagnosed with diabetes at the onset of the study, and diabetes had occurred when the immune system was disrupted and began attacking insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Using stem cells in these cases neutralized the attack on the pancreas and helped restore the ability to create insulin.
Melbourne Herald SunJune 27, 2007
'Missing Link' Between Mouse and Human Embryos Found
Two studies published in the journal Nature outline findings of embryonic stem cells that are similar to human stem cells in rodents. Previous animal stem cells behaved very differently. The "epiblast stem cells" were retrieved by British scientists in the later stages of embryonic development in mice and rats. As such, on a molecular level they are more similar to human embryonic stem cells than to previously retrieved rodent stem cells. The implications for further stem cell research are immense, since embryonic stem cells have the potential to become almost any type of cell in the body. Retrieving embryonic stem cells from rodents could make these cells more readily available to researchers in the lab, and avoid the controversy surrounding human embryonic stem cell research.
BBC News - UKJune 20, 2007
First Small Molecule Drug to Boost Stem Cell Recovery
Researchers from the Children's Hospital Boston have found a new way to increase the production of stem cells using embryos extracted from zebrafish. The study looked at 2,500 chemicals that either increased or decreased gene activity that is required for blood stem cells to develop in vertebrate embryos. Of these, 82 chemicals were identified as having some sort of effect on stem cell gene activity in zebrafish. A series of experiments confirmed that prostaglandins, especially dmPGE2, promote stem cell formation – particularly, in zebrafish whose marrow was depleted by irradiation. The hospital is now hoping to conduct clinical trials of the drug, which could be particularly beneficial for patients who have undergone chemotherapy or bone marrow transplants for leukemia and other cancers, since the drug could aid in a quicker immune function recovery. The findings are published in the June 21 issue of Nature.
Children's Hospital BostonJune 11, 2007
Cord Blood and Bone Marrow are a Match
A study funded by the National Cancer Institute, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Disease has found that the survival rates of mismatched cord blood transplants for children with leukemia equaled that of matched bone marrow transplants. The study compared matched bone marrow transplant outcomes to cord blood transplants where mismatch was limited and the amount of cord blood cells used were sufficient. In comparison, umbilical cord blood transplants required longer recovery periods but posed a lower risk of graft versus host disease. Rates of leukemia relapse are also lower with mismatched cord blood, which was associated with a 20% higher survival rate than matched bone marrow transplants. The study suggests that cord blood should be considered a second line therapy for children with leukemia, where cell dose and HLA match are critical determinants of the outcome.
