StemCell Therapy

A hot topic in biomedical sciences is converting white bad fat into brown good fat.

The latter type of fat is viewed more positively because it seems to be associated with a relatively metabolically more active, leaner state.

Could we somehow convert white fat to brown fat and in so doing have a beneficial effect on health?

Researchers from the Harvard Stem Cell Institute just came out with some new research on potential stem cell-related approaches to the much-vaunted conversion of white-to-brown fat.

Thepaperwas posted yesterday in the excellent journalNature Cell Biology from a team led by Dr. Chad Cowan and is entitled:White-to-brown metabolic conversion of human adipocytes by JAK inhibition.

The authors conducted an elegant screen (see Figure 1a above) to look for molecules that could shift the fate of fat tissue produced from stem cells toward brown fat. They found so-called JAK kinase inhibitors could do the trick in human cultured cells.

This is heady stuff.

The Harvard Gazette talks about it ina piece entitled A Pill to Shed Fat?:

Cowans group has found two small molecules that convert fat stem cells, which normally would produce white fat, into brown-like fat cells. These brown-like fat cells burn excess energy and thereby reduce the size and numbers of white fat cells.

I find this paper very exciting, but I wonder if it is a bittoo exciting if you know what I mean. For example, take a look at this statement that is bouncing around in the mainstream media about this fat finding:

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Harvard Predicts Fat-Burning Stem Cell Pill To Replace ...

The Stem Cell Doctors at Regenocyte, headed by Dr. Zannos Grekos, are comprised of international medical specialists including: cardiology, plastic surgery, neurology and others.

Stem cell doctors use stem cell therapy to successfully treat spinal, vascular, cardiomyopathy and heart disease and pulmonary disease. Dr. Zannos Grekos headed the first stem cell clinic in the U.S. and has performed almost 1,000 stem cell transplants.

Start NOW and learn how stem cell doctors can help you.

Stem cell doctors at Regenocyte, an international medical team, transplant adult stem cells (autologous) to treat not only COPD and other pulmonary or lung diseases, but Cystic Fibrosis, neurological disease such as Parkinsons and Alzheimers, spinal cord injuries and many other health problems as well. Adult stem cell treatments are being used to treat high-risk, life-threatening cardiac pulmonary, neurological and vascular diseases.

Through the Regenocyte adult stem cell therapy process, stem cells, taken from the patients own bone marrow or Adipose (fat) tissue, have been also successfully treated cardiovascular disease, traumatic brain injury and many other medical conditions. COPD patients and others that once had limited options are now finding viable solutions through stem cell therapies with Regenocyte. Stem Cell Doctors

Stem Cell Therapy can work for you. Find out HERE.

Adult stem cell therapy research has been documented to effectively treat many inoperable and last stage diseases. Stem cell therapies are used by many respected and qualified physicians around the world as an alternative treatment for more invasive procedures such as pacemakers and even organ transplant.

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May 21st, 2015 Filed under Magnetic Resonance Imaging Tagged angelo-mosso, animals, balance, bold, cambridge, energy, gradient, magnetic, nuclei, proportion, redistribution, study, the-brain Comments Off on Functional magnetic resonance imaging Wikipedia, the

FMRI redirects here. For Fault Management Resource Identifier, see OpenBSM.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging or functional MRI (fMRI) is a functional neuroimaging procedure using MRI technology that measures brain activity by detecting associated changes in blood flow.[1][2] This technique relies on the fact that cerebral blood flow and neuronal activation are coupled. When an area of the brain is in use, blood flow to that region also increases.[3]

The primary form of fMRI uses the blood-oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) contrast,[4] discovered by Seiji Ogawa. This is a type of specialized brain and body scan used to map neural activity in the brain or spinal cord of humans or other animals by imaging the change in blood flow (hemodynamic response) related to energy use by brain cells.[4] Since the early 1990s, fMRI has come to dominate brain mapping research because it does not require people to undergo shots, surgery, or to ingest substances, or be exposed to radiation, etc.[5] Other methods of obtaining contrast are arterial spin labeling [6] and diffusion MRI.

The procedure is similar to MRI but uses the change in magnetization between oxygen-rich and oxygen-poor blood as its basic measure. This measure is frequently corrupted by noise from various sources and hence statistical procedures are used to extract the underlying signal. The resulting brain activation can be presented graphically by color-coding the strength of activation across the brain or the specific region studied. The technique can localize activity to within millimeters but, using standard techniques, no better than within a window of a few seconds.[citation needed]

fMRI is used both in the research world, and to a lesser extent, in the clinical world. It can also be combined and complemented with other measures of brain physiology such as EEG and NIRS. Newer methods which improve both spatial and time resolution are being researched, and these largely use biomarkers other than the BOLD signal. Some companies have developed commercial products such as lie detectors based on fMRI techniques, but the research is not believed to be ripe enough for widespread commercialization.[7]

The fMRI concept builds on the earlier MRI scanning technology and the discovery of properties of oxygen-rich blood. MRI brain scans use a strong, permanent, static magnetic field to align nuclei in the brain region being studied. Another magnetic field, the gradient field, is then applied to kick the nuclei to higher magnetization levels, with the effect depending on where they are located. When the gradient field is removed, the nuclei go back to their original states, and the energy they emit is measured with a coil to recreate the positions of the nuclei. MRI thus provides a static structural view of brain matter. The central thrust behind fMRI was to extend MRI to capture functional changes in the brain caused by neuronal activity. Differences in magnetic properties between arterial (oxygen-rich) and venous (oxygen-poor) blood provided this link.[8]

Since the 1890s it has been known that changes in blood flow and blood oxygenation in the brain (collectively known as hemodynamics) are closely linked to neural activity.[9] When neurons become active, local blood flow to those brain regions increases, and oxygen-rich (oxygenated) blood displaces oxygen-depleted (deoxygenated) blood around 2 seconds later. This rises to a peak over 46 seconds, before falling back to the original level (and typically undershooting slightly). Oxygen is carried by the hemoglobin molecule in red blood cells. Deoxygenated hemoglobin (dHb) is more magnetic (paramagnetic) than oxygenated hemoglobin (Hb), which is virtually resistant to magnetism (diamagnetic). This difference leads to an improved MR signal since the diamagnetic blood interferes with the magnetic MR signal less. This improvement can be mapped to show which neurons are active at a time.[10]

During the late 19th century, Angelo Mosso invented the human circulation balance, which could non-invasively measure the redistribution of blood during emotional and intellectual activity.[11] However, although briefly mentioned by William James in 1890, the details and precise workings of this balance and the experiments Mosso performed with it have remained largely unknown until the recent discovery of the original instrument as well as Mossos reports by Stefano Sandrone and colleagues.[12]Angelo Mosso investigated several critical variables that are still relevant in modern neuroimaging such as the signal-to-noise ratio, the appropriate choice of the experimental paradigm and the need for the simultaneous recording of differing physiological parameters.[12] Mossos manuscripts do not provide direct evidence that the balance was really able to measure changes in cerebral blood flow due to cognition,[12] however a modern replication performed by David T Field[13] has now demonstrated using modern signal processing techniques unavailable to Mosso that a balance apparatus of this type is able detect changes in cerebral blood volume related to cognition.

In 1890, Charles Roy and Charles Sherrington first experimentally linked brain function to its blood flow, at Cambridge University.[14] The next step to resolving how to measure blood flow to the brain was Linus Paulings and Charles Coryells discovery in 1936 that oxygen-rich blood with Hb was weakly repelled by magnetic fields, while oxygen-depleted blood with dHb was attracted to a magnetic field, though less so than ferromagnetic elements such as iron. Seiji Ogawa at AT&T Bell labs recognized that this could be used to augment MRI, which could study just the static structure of the brain, since the differing magnetic properties of dHb and Hb caused by blood flow to activated brain regions would cause measurable changes in the MRI signal. BOLD is the MRI contrast of dHb, discovered in 1990 by Ogawa. In a seminal 1990 study based on earlier work by Thulborn et al., Ogawa and colleagues scanned rodents in a strong magnetic field (7.0T) MRI. To manipulate blood oxygen level, they changed the proportion of oxygen the animals breathed. As this proportion fell, a map of blood flow in the brain was seen in the MRI. They verified this by placing test tubes with oxygenated or deoxygenated blood and creating separate images. They also showed that gradient-echo images, which depend on a form of loss of magnetization called T2* decay, produced the best images. To show these blood flow changes were related to functional brain activity, they changed the composition of the air breathed by rats, and scanned them while monitoring brain activity with EEG.[15] The first attempt to detect the regional brain activity using MRI was performed by Belliveau and others at Harvard University using the contrast agent Magnevist, a ferromagnetic substance remaining in the bloodstream after intravenous injection. However, this method is not popular in human fMRI, because any medically unnecessary injection is to a degree unsafe and uncomfortable, and because the agent stays in the blood only for a short time. [16]

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Nano Medicine

Life extension science, also known as anti-aging medicine, indefinite life extension, experimental gerontology, and biomedical gerontology, is the study of slowing down or reversing the processes of aging to extend both the maximum and average lifespan. Some researchers in this area, and "life extensionists", "immortalists" or "longevists" (those who wish to achieve longer lives themselves), believe that future breakthroughs in tissue rejuvenation, stem cells, regenerative medicine, molecular repair, pharmaceuticals, and organ replacement (such as with artificial organs or xenotransplantations) will eventually enable humans to have indefinite lifespans (agerasia[1]) through complete rejuvenation to a healthy youthful condition.

The sale of putative anti-aging products such as nutrition, physical fitness, skin care, hormone replacements, vitamins, supplements and herbs is a lucrative global industry, with the US market generating about $50billion of revenue each year.[2] Some medical experts state that the use of such products has not been proven to affect the aging process and many claims regarding the efficacy of these marketed products have been roundly criticized by medical experts, including the American Medical Association.[2][3][4][5][6]

However, it has not been shown that the goal of indefinite human lifespans itself is necessarily unfeasible; some animals such as hydra, planarian flatworms, and certain sponges, corals, and jellyfish do not die of old age and exhibit potential immortality.[7][8][9][10] The ethical ramifications of life extension are debated by bioethicists.

Life extension is a controversial topic due to fear of overpopulation and possible effects on society.[11] Religious people are no more likely to oppose life extension than the unaffiliated,[12] though some variation exists between religious denominations. Biogerontologist Aubrey De Grey counters the overpopulation critique by pointing out that the therapy could postpone or eliminate menopause, allowing women to space out their pregnancies over more years and thus decreasing the yearly population growth rate.[13] Moreover, the philosopher and futurist Max More argues that, given the fact the worldwide population growth rate is slowing down and is projected to eventually stabilize and begin falling, superlongevity would be unlikely to contribute to overpopulation.[11]

A Spring 2013 Pew Research poll in the United States found that 38% of Americans would want life extension treatments, and 56% would reject it. However, it also found that 68% believed most people would want it and that only 4% consider an "ideal lifespan" to be more than 120 years. The median "ideal lifespan" was 91 years of age and the majority of the public (63%) viewed medical advances aimed at prolonging life as generally good. 41% of Americans believed that radical life extension would be good for society, while 51% said they believed it would be bad for society.[12] One possibility for why 56% of Americans claim they would reject life extension treatments may be due to the cultural perception that living longer would result in a longer period of decrepitude, and that the elderly in our current society are unhealthy.[14]

During the process of aging, an organism accumulates damage to its macromolecules, cells, tissues, and organs. Specifically, aging is characterized as and thought to be caused by "genomic instability, telomere attrition, epigenetic alterations, loss of proteostasis, deregulated nutrient sensing, mitochondrial dysfunction, cellular senescence, stem cell exhaustion, and altered intercellular communication."[15]Oxidation damage to cellular contents caused by free radicals is believed to contribute to aging as well.[16][16][17]

The longest a human has ever been proven to live is 122 years, the case of Jeanne Calment who was born in 1875 and died in 1997, whereas the maximum lifespan of a wildtype mouse, commonly used as a model in research on aging, is about three years.[18] Genetic differences between humans and mice that may account for these different aging rates include differences in efficiency of DNA repair, antioxidant defenses, energy metabolism, proteostasis maintenance, and recycling mechanisms such as autophagy.[19]

Average lifespan in a population is lowered by infant and child mortality, which are frequently linked to infectious diseases or nutrition problems. Later in life, vulnerability to accidents and age-related chronic disease such as cancer or cardiovascular disease play an increasing role in mortality. Extension of expected lifespan can often be achieved by access to improved medical care, vaccinations, good diet, exercise and avoidance of hazards such as smoking.

Maximum lifespan is determined by the rate of aging for a species inherent in its genes and by environmental factors. Widely recognized methods of extending maximum lifespan in model organisms such as nematodes, fruit flies, and mice include caloric restriction, gene manipulation, and administration of pharmaceuticals.[20] Another technique uses evolutionary pressures such as breeding from only older members or altering levels of extrinsic mortality.[21][22]

Theoretically, extension of maximum lifespan in humans could be achieved by reducing the rate of aging damage by periodic replacement of damaged tissues, molecular repair or rejuvenation of deteriorated cells and tissues, reversal of harmful epigenetic changes, or the enhancement of telomerase enzyme activity.[23][24]

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Life extension - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Stem Cell Research in Jewish Law Daniel Eisenberg, MD

Stem cell research is among the most promising and controversial technological breakthroughs of our time. Most cells in the human body are differentiated and, if they maintain the ability to divide at all, have the ability to form only cells similar to themselves. Stem cells have the unique property of being able to divide, while maintaining their totipotent or pluripotent characteristics. Early in mammalian development, stem cells (under the proper conditions) have the ability to differentiate into every cell of the human body (totipotent), potentially forming an entire fetus. Stem cells derived from later stages of mammalian development have the ability to differentiate into multiple cell types, but not into an entire organism. If we were able to manipulate the conditions controlling cellular differentiation, we might be able to create replacement cells and organs, potentially curing illnesses such as diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson's disease.

The ultimate promise of stem cell technology would be to combine it with cloning. Imagine a man dying of liver failure. If we could take a somatic cell from his skin and place the nuclear DNA into a denucleated egg cell, we would have created an almost exact copy[1] of that sick man's cell, capable of differentiating into his clone. Instead of allowing the cloned cell to develop into a fetus, we might place it (or its stem cells alone) into the appropriate environment that would cause it to differentiate into a liver that would be virtually genetically identical to the sick man. If we could "grow" this liver to maturity, we could offer the sick man a liver transplant without the risk of rejection and without the need for anti-rejection drugs.

This sounds like a virtual panacea for many of man's ills. Yet we still do not know if we are able to successfully clone a human, nor are we sure what practical value can be derived from stem cells. We are currently in the realm of fascinating speculation. It will require years of very expensive, labor intensive research to determine the potential that stem cells hold for the treatment, palliation, and cure of human illness. While stem cells have been isolated from adults and aborted fetuses, the best source is the "pre-embryo," the small clump of cells that compose the early zygote only a few days following conception. Therefore, to best investigate the latent possibilities inherent in stem cells, scientists wish to use the approximately 100,000 "excess" frozen pre-embryos that are "left over" from earlier IVF attempts.

What is the halachic perspective on such research and what could the possible objections to such research be? There is little argument that the use of stem cells derived from adult somatic tissue pose few ethical problems. The issues raised by stem cell research involve the use of in vitro fertilized eggs which have not yet been implanted in a woman and the use of tissue from aborted fetuses.

The issues raised by stem cell research may be divided into several questions:

Artificial insemination has been dealt with a length by a spectrum of poskim (rabbis qualified to decide matters of Jewish law). While artificial insemination by a donor is generally strongly condemned, the use of a husband's sperm for artificial insemination in cases of necessity was accepted by most Rabbinical authorities.[2] The question of in vitro fertilization was dealt with later. A significant majority of authorities accepted in vitro fertilization under the same rubric and limitations as artificial insemination,[3] including the fulfillment of the mitzvah of procreation.[4] However, a fundamentally new question arose. What is the status of the "spare" embryos that are not implanted as part of the first cycle of IVF?[5] Must they be implanted in the mother as part of another attempt at pregnancy. May/must they be donated to another women to allow the pre-embryo its chance at life? May they remain frozen indefinitely?[6] Most importantly to our topic, the question arose - may pre-embryos be destroyed? To answer this question, we must first generally examine the Jewish approach to abortion.

Abortion in Jewish Law

The traditional Jewish view of abortion does not fit conveniently into either of the major "camps" in the current American abortion debate. We neither ban abortion completely, nor do we allow indiscriminate abortion "on demand." To gain a clear understanding of when abortion is sanctioned, or even required, and when it is forbidden, requires an appreciation of certain nuances of halacha (Jewish law) which govern the status of the fetus.

The easiest way to conceptualize a fetus in halacha is to imagine it as a full-fledged human being - but not quite. In most circumstances, the fetus is treated like any other "person." Generally, one may not deliberately harm a fetus, and sanctions are placed upon those who purposefully cause a woman to miscarry. However, when its life comes into direct conflict with an already born person, the autonomous person's life takes precedence.

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Jewish Law - Articles - Stem Cell Research in Jewish Law

Schneider BP, Winer EP, Foulkes WD, Garber J, Perou CM, Richardson A, Sledge GW, Carey LA: Triple-negative breast cancer: risk factors to potential targets.

Clin Cancer Res 2008, 14:8010-8018. PubMedAbstract | PublisherFullText

Goss PE, Ingle JN, Ales-Martinez JE, Cheung AM, Chlebowski RT, Wactawski-Wende J, McTiernan A, Robbins J, Johnson KC, Martin LW, Winquist E, Sarto GE, Garber JE, Fabian CJ, Pujol P, Maunsell E, Farmer P, Gelmon KA, Tu D, Richardson H: Exemestane for breast-cancer prevention in postmenopausal women.

New Engl J Med 2011, 364:2381-2391. PubMedAbstract | PublisherFullText

Rosen JM, Jordan CT: The increasing complexity of the cancer stem cell paradigm.

Science 2009, 324:1670-1673. PubMedAbstract | PublisherFullText | PubMedCentralFullText

Al-Hajj M, Wicha MS, Benito-Hernandez A, Morrison SJ, Clarke MF: Prospective identification of tumorigenic breast cancer cells.

Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2003, 100:3983-3988. PubMedAbstract | PublisherFullText | PubMedCentralFullText

Charafe-Jauffret E, Ginestier C, Iovino F, Wicinski J, Cervera N, Finetti P, Hur MH, Diebel ME, Monville F, Dutcher J, Brown M, Viens P, Xerri L, Bertucci F, Stassi G, Dontu G, Birnbaum D, Wicha MS: Breast cancer cell lines contain functional cancer stem cells with metastatic capacity and a distinct molecular signature.

Cancer Res 2009, 69:1302-1313. PubMedAbstract | PublisherFullText | PubMedCentralFullText

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Breast Cancer Research | Full text | Cancer stem cell ...

With more than 50 years of experience studying blood-forming stem cells called hematopoietic stem cells, scientists have developed sufficient understanding to actually use them as a therapy. Currently, no other type of stem cell, adult, fetal or embryonic, has attained such status. Hematopoietic stem cell transplants are now routinely used to treat patients with cancers and other disorders of the blood and immune systems. Recently, researchers have observed in animal studies that hematopoietic stem cells appear to be able to form other kinds of cells, such as muscle, blood vessels, and bone. If this can be applied to human cells, it may eventually be possible to use hematopoietic stem cells to replace a wider array of cells and tissues than once thought.

Despite the vast experience with hematopoietic stem cells, scientists face major roadblocks in expanding their use beyond the replacement of blood and immune cells. First, hematopoietic stem cells are unable to proliferate (replicate themselves) and differentiate (become specialized to other cell types) in vitro (in the test tube or culture dish). Second, scientists do not yet have an accurate method to distinguish stem cells from other cells recovered from the blood or bone marrow. Until scientists overcome these technical barriers, they believe it is unlikely that hematopoietic stem cells will be applied as cell replacement therapy in diseases such as diabetes, Parkinson's Disease, spinal cord injury, and many others.

Blood cells are responsible for constant maintenance and immune protection of every cell type of the body. This relentless and brutal work requires that blood cells, along with skin cells, have the greatest powers of self-renewal of any adult tissue.

The stem cells that form blood and immune cells are known as hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). They are ultimately responsible for the constant renewal of bloodthe production of billions of new blood cells each day. Physicians and basic researchers have known and capitalized on this fact for more than 50 years in treating many diseases. The first evidence and definition of blood-forming stem cells came from studies of people exposed to lethal doses of radiation in 1945.

Basic research soon followed. After duplicating radiation sickness in mice, scientists found they could rescue the mice from death with bone marrow transplants from healthy donor animals. In the early 1960s, Till and McCulloch began analyzing the bone marrow to find out which components were responsible for regenerating blood [56]. They defined what remain the two hallmarks of an HSC: it can renew itself and it can produce cells that give rise to all the different types of blood cells (see Chapter 4. The Adult Stem Cell).

A hematopoietic stem cell is a cell isolated from the blood or bone marrow that can renew itself, can differentiate to a variety of specialized cells, can mobilize out of the bone marrow into circulating blood, and can undergo programmed cell death, called apoptosisa process by which cells that are detrimental or unneeded self-destruct.

A major thrust of basic HSC research since the 1960s has been identifying and characterizing these stem cells. Because HSCs look and behave in culture like ordinary white blood cells, this has been a difficult challenge and this makes them difficult to identify by morphology (size and shape). Even today, scientists must rely on cell surface proteins, which serve, only roughly, as markers of white blood cells.

Identifying and characterizing properties of HSCs began with studies in mice, which laid the groundwork for human studies. The challenge is formidable as about 1 in every 10,000 to 15,000 bone marrow cells is thought to be a stem cell. In the blood stream the proportion falls to 1 in 100,000 blood cells. To this end, scientists began to develop tests for proving the self-renewal and the plasticity of HSCs.

The "gold standard" for proving that a cell derived from mouse bone marrow is indeed an HSC is still based on the same proof described above and used in mice many years ago. That is, the cells are injected into a mouse that has received a dose of irradiation sufficient to kill its own blood-producing cells. If the mouse recovers and all types of blood cells reappear (bearing a genetic marker from the donor animal), the transplanted cells are deemed to have included stem cells.

These studies have revealed that there appear to be two kinds of HSCs. If bone marrow cells from the transplanted mouse can, in turn, be transplanted to another lethally irradiated mouse and restore its hematopoietic system over some months, they are considered to be long-term stem cells that are capable of self-renewal. Other cells from bone marrow can immediately regenerate all the different types of blood cells, but under normal circumstances cannot renew themselves over the long term, and these are referred to as short-term progenitor or precursor cells. Progenitor or precursor cells are relatively immature cells that are precursors to a fully differentiated cell of the same tissue type. They are capable of proliferating, but they have a limited capacity to differentiate into more than one cell type as HSCs do. For example, a blood progenitor cell may only be able to make a red blood cell (see Figure 5.1. Hematopoietic and Stromal Stem Cell Differentiation).

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5. Hematopoietic Stem Cells [Stem Cell Information]

Each kidney in the human body consists of about 1 million nephrons that are basically filtering units. Every nephron features a glomerulus which consist of a cluster of tiny blood vessels. Inside a kidney, toxins in blood may be removed through the glomerulusstructure. High blood sugar often make the blood vessels thicken and become damaged triggering the Kidney Failure process.

Kidney Failure tends to disproportionately affect patients with other underlying medical conditions such as Polycystic Kidney Disease,pancreatitis, orDiabetes Mellitus. Doctors believe that sustained uncontrolled high blood sugar (and also high blood pressure) is the main cause of kidney failure for most people. Not all Diabetic patients have to suffer from eventual failure requiring a transplant or require emergency reversal of kidney disease with stem cells. TheKidneys have the function of eliminating excess fluids from the blood through our urine. When kidneys start to fail, this function gets disrupted. More fluids start collecting in the body. Then, swelling begins. Patients often report have swollen eyes as well as swollen legs after some time the entire body might swells up.

When excess fluids and waste cant be removed from the body naturally, patients begin to lose appetite. They might even begin vomiting frequently as the bodies struggles with the excess stored waste. As kidney begin to lose functions other symptoms take hold, such as retaining helpful proteins in the blood supply called proteinuria. Proteinuria canbe easily discovered with a simple urine test. Kidney disease patients who also have Diabetes can find that their urine turns out to be a little foamy in appearance.

Clinical studies have shown that red blood cells have the function of carrying oxygen from the lungs to provide all of the bodys requirements and to provide you the energy youll need for your day-to-day activities. Nevertheless, a failing kidney cannot secrete sufficient erythropoietinand lower levels of erythropoietindo not stimulate the bone marrow to be able to produce more red cells which results in anemia. When a patient has anemia, they might notice the skin or gums in the mouth are pale in color.(18564903)

Stem cells are the humans bodies repair mechanism. Stem cells can differentiate into any functional tissue cells. Kidney cells necrosis and/or decreased kidney functions can be seen in abnormal creatinine levels. OurApproved Stem cell Transplantsfor Renal Failure helpto replenish the required kidney cells and thus promote a more normal healthy kidney function. There are two types of stem cells treatments that may be utilized in ourRegenerative protocols for Renalfailure usingstem cells. One part of treatment is focuses on promoting proper kidney function, and the other would be to replenish red blood cell amounts to help reverse the decline in HGB level. The autologous mesenchymal cells are transfused back into your body through a simple blood transfusion that allows the circulating stem cells could to reach the kidneys via normal blood circulation. This breakthrough treatment for renal failure can be done with and without dialysis and demands no surgical operation that requires extended hospital stays only at the Regeneration Center of Thailand. The mesenchymal stem cell treatment for kidney disease is done in multiple stages but each daily session takes about two hours each time.(20620502)

For those suffering from moderate to late/terminal stage kidney failure, allogeneic cell therapy could help them by eliminating the need for dialysis or decreasing the frequency of dialysis. For patients with early stage of renal failure or kidney disease, the stem cell therapy prevents further damage on the kidneys functions, thus promoting regular kidney function. This treatment gives the patient an assurance that he/she will continue living his/her normal life without worrying about worsening of his/her kidneys.(18688653)

Please Note Late Stage Renal Failure Presents Many Complications. Travel to Thailand may not be ideal and may result in Disqualification for Treatment. All Treatments Must Be Approved in Advance Upon Submission of Current/Actual Medical Records From Patients Home Country.

Number of MSCsInjections for Treatment of NephronFailure: 2-8 Infusionsof Allogeneic Hematopoietic Mesenchymal Kidney Stem cells (Per Treatment stage requirement) Types of Stem Cells and Delivery Method:Lab Enriched Mesenchymal Stem cells that are derived from HLA Matched Allogeneic stem cells, Cord blood stem cells,Placenta derived cells or for less severe conditions using Autologous cells that are derived from Peripheral Blood or Adipose Tissue depending on the severity of the underlying disease as needed. Our treatment does not require dangerous surgeries and the delivery of the cells will are usually made via a Guided CT Scanner (when necessary) or more commonly through anIntravenous Drip,Direct injection or Intrathecal Injections.(22553996)

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Nephron Cells To Reverse Kidney Disease & Renal Failure

Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) scientists have identified a new therapeutic approach for treating polycystic kidney disease (PKD), one of the most common life threatening, inherited diseases in humans, affecting more than 1 in 500 individuals. Patients with the disease experience an abnormal proliferation of kidney cells that ultimately results in cysts and a decline in organ function leading to kidney failure.

PKD comes in two forms. Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) develops in adulthood and is quite common, while autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease (ARPKD) is rare but frequently fatal. ADPKD is caused by mutations in either of two proteins, polycystin-1 and polycystin-2, while ARPKD is caused by mutations in a protein called fibrocystin. There is no cure or widely adopted clinical therapy for either form of the disease.

The mechanisms that cause cysts to form have long been poorly understood because doctors cant routinely remove scientifically useful amounts of diseased cells from patients. Instead, a team of scientists from the HSCI Kidney Disease Program at Brigham and Women's Hospital were able to reprogram the skin cells from five PKD patientsthree with ADPKD and two with ARPKDinto induced pluripotent stem cells, which can give rise to many different cell types, and then differentiate them into other cell types.

Led by HSCI Executive Committee member Joseph Bonventre, MD, PhD, and his colleagues Benjamin Freedman, PhD, and HSCI Affiliated Faculty member Albert Lam, MD, the research team examined the patient-derived cells under the microscope, and discovered that the polycystin-2 protein traveled normally to the cilia in cells from ARPKD patients, but did not in ADPKD patients.

Since cells from these ADPKD patients had different mutations in the gene that encodes polycystin-1, as confirmed by collaborators at the Mayo Clinic, the investigators explored the relationship between polycystin-1 and polycystin-2 and found that the mutated polycystin-1 was not able to shepherd the polycystin-2 protein to the cilium to an extent seen in normal cells carrying normal polycystin-1.

"When we added back a healthy form of polycystin-1 to cells, it traveled to the cilium and brought its partner polycystin-2 with it, suggesting a possible therapeutic approach for PKD," explained Freedman in a press release. "This was the first time induced pluripotent stem cells have been used to study human kidney disease where a defect related to disease mechanisms has been found."

The scientists next plan to use a clinical trial in a dish approach to identify therapeutics that potentially may never have been considered before for kidney disease. The procedure works by screening a library of small molecules using the patient-derived stem cells to see which of the compounds can facilitate polycystin-2 movement to the cilium, a possible approach to the prevention of cyst growth in people with ADPKD.

Since you have the abnormalities in the cells, you could potentially try different therapeutic agents that could correct that abnormality, providing a rationale for trying those therapeutic agents first in experimental animals and then potentially in people, Bonventre said.

The research was funded by the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, the National Institutes of Health, and the March of Dimes. The iPS cells were created with the help of Laurence Daheron, PhD, and her team at the HSCI iPS Core Facility.

Research Cited: Reduced ciliary polycystin-2 in induced pluripotent stem cells from polycystic kidney disease patients with PKD1 mutations. Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. September 5, 2013

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Patient Stem Cells Offer Insight into Origins of ...

The adaptive immune system, also known as the acquired immune or, more rarely, as the specific immune system, is a subsystem of the overall immune system that is composed of highly specialized, systemic cells and processes that eliminate or prevent pathogen growth. The adaptive immune system is one of the two main immunity strategies found in vertebrates (the other being the innate immune system). Adaptive immunity creates immunological memory after an initial response to a specific pathogen, leads to an enhanced response to subsequent encounters with that pathogen. This process of acquired immunity is the basis of vaccination. Like the innate system, the adaptive system includes both humoral immunity components and cell-mediated immunity components.

Unlike the innate immune system, the adaptive immune system is highly specific to a specific pathogen. Adaptive immunity can also provide long-lasting protection: for example; someone who recovers from measles is now protected against measles for their lifetime but in other cases it does not provide lifetime protection: for example; chickenpox. The adaptive system response destroys invading pathogens and any toxic molecules they produce. Sometimes the adaptive system is unable to distinguish foreign molecules, the effects of this may be hayfever, asthma or any other allergies. Antigens are any substances that elicit the adaptive immune response. The cells that carry out the adaptive immune response are white blood cells known as lymphocytes. There are two main broad classes- antibody responses and cell mediated immune response which are also carried by two different lymphocytes (B cells and T cells). In antibody responses, B cells are activated to secrete antibodies, which are proteins also known as immunoglobulins. Antibodies travel through the bloodstream and bind to the foreign antigen causing it to inactivate, which does not allow the antigen to bind to the host.[1]

In acquired immunity, pathogen-specific receptors are "acquired" during the lifetime of the organism (whereas in innate immunity pathogen-specific receptors are already encoded in the germline). The acquired response is said to be "adaptive" because it prepares the body's immune system for future challenges (though it can actually also be maladaptive when it results in autoimmunity).[n 1]

The system is highly adaptable because of somatic hypermutation (a process of accelerated somatic mutations), and V(D)J recombination (an irreversible genetic recombination of antigen receptor gene segments). This mechanism allows a small number of genes to generate a vast number of different antigen receptors, which are then uniquely expressed on each individual lymphocyte. Because the gene rearrangement leads to an irreversible change in the DNA of each cell, all of the progeny (offspring) of that cell will then inherit genes encoding the same receptor specificity, including the memory B cells and memory T cells that are the keys to long-lived specific immunity.

A theoretical framework explaining the workings of the acquired immune system is provided by immune network theory. This theory, which builds on established concepts of clonal selection, is being applied in the search for an HIV vaccine.

Acquired immunity is triggered in vertebrates when a pathogen evades the innate immune system and (1) generates a threshold level of antigen and (2) generates "stranger" or "danger" signals activating dendritic cells.[2]

The major functions of the acquired immune system include:

The cells of the acquired immune system are T and B lymphocytes; lymphocytes are a subset of leukocyte. B cells and T cells are the major types of lymphocytes. The human body has about 2 trillion lymphocytes, constituting 2040% of white blood cells (WBCs); their total mass is about the same as the brain or liver.[3] The peripheral blood contains 2% of circulating lymphocytes; the rest move within the tissues and lymphatic system.[3]

B cells and T cells are derived from the same multipotent hematopoietic stem cells, and are morphologically indistinguishable from one another until after they are activated.[4] B cells play a large role in the humoral immune response, whereas T cells are intimately involved in cell-mediated immune responses. In all vertebrates except Agnatha, B cells and T cells are produced by stem cells in the bone marrow.[4] T progenitors migrate from the bone marrow to the thymus where they are called thymocytes and where they develop into T cells. In humans, approximately 12% of the lymphocyte pool recirculates each hour to optimize the opportunities for antigen-specific lymphocytes to find their specific antigen within the secondary lymphoid tissues.[5]

In an adult animal, the peripheral lymphoid organs contain a mixture of B and T cells in at least three stages of differentiation:

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[Continued from above] . . . andother organs that transport a fluid called lymph from the tissues as it returns to the bloodstream. The lymphatic tissue of these organs filters and cleans the lymph of any debris, abnormal cells, or pathogens. The lymphatic system also transports fatty acids from the intestines to the circulatory system.

Red Bone Marrow and Leukocytes Red bone marrow is a highly vascular tissue found in the spaces between trabeculae of spongy bone. It is mostly found in the ends of long bones and in the flat bones of the body. Red bone marrow is a hematopoietic tissue containing many stem cells that produce blood cells. All of the leukocytes, or white blood cells, of the immune system are produced by red bone marrow. Leukocytes can be further broken down into 2 groups based upon the type of stem cells that produces them: myeloid stem cells and lymphoid stem cells.

Myeloid stem cells produce monocytes and the granular leukocyteseosinophils, basophils, and neutrophils.

Lymphoid stem cells produce T lymphocytes and B lymphocytes.

Lymph Capillaries As blood passes through the tissues of the body, it enters thin-walled capillaries to facilitate diffusion of nutrients, gases, and wastes. Blood plasma also diffuses through the thin capillary walls and penetrates into the spaces between the cells of the tissues. Some of this plasma diffuses back into the blood of the capillaries, but a considerable portion becomes embedded in the tissues as interstitial fluid. To prevent the accumulation of excess fluids, small dead-end vessels called lymphatic capillaries extend into the tissues to absorb fluids and return them to circulation.

Lymph The interstitial fluid picked up by lymphatic capillaries is known as lymph. Lymph very closely resembles the plasma found in the veins: it is a mixture of about 90% water and 10% solutes such as proteins, cellular waste products, dissolved gases, and hormones. Lymph may also contain bacterial cells that are picked up from diseased tissues and the white blood cells that fight these pathogens. In late-stage cancer patients, lymph often contains cancerous cells that have metastasized from tumors and may form new tumors within the lymphatic system. A special type of lymph, known as chyle, is produced in the digestive system as lymph absorbs triglycerides from the intestinal villi. Due to the presence of triglycerides, chyle has a milky white coloration to it.

Lymphatic Vessels Lymphatic capillaries merge together into larger lymphatic vessels to carry lymph through the body. The structure of lymphatic vessels closely resembles that of veins: they both have thin walls and many check valves due to their shared function of carrying fluids under low pressure. Lymph is transported through lymphatic vessels by the skeletal muscle pumpcontractions of skeletal muscles constrict the vessels to push the fluid forward. Check valves prevent the fluid from flowing back toward the lymphatic capillaries.

Lymph Nodes Lymph nodes are small, kidney-shaped organs of the lymphatic system. There are several hundred lymph nodes found mostly throughout the thorax and abdomen of the body with the highest concentrations in the axillary (armpit) and inguinal (groin) regions. The outside of each lymph node is made of a dense fibrous connective tissue capsule. Inside the capsule, the lymph node is filled with reticular tissue containing many lymphocytes and macrophages. The lymph nodes function as filters of lymph that enters from several afferent lymph vessels. The reticular fibers of the lymph node act as a net to catch any debris or cells that are present in the lymph. Macrophages and lymphocytes attack and kill any microbes caught in the reticular fibers. Efferent lymph vessels then carry the filtered lymph out of the lymph node and towards the lymphatic ducts.

Lymphatic Ducts All of the lymphatic vessels of the body carry lymph toward the 2 lymphatic ducts: the thoracic duct and the right lymphatic ducts. These ducts serve to return lymph back to the venous blood supply so that it can be circulated as plasma.

Lymphatic Nodules Outside of the system of lymphatic vessels and lymph nodes, there are masses of non-encapsulated lymphatic tissue known as lymphatic nodules. The lymphatic nodules are associated with the mucous membranes of the body, where they work to protect the body from pathogens entering the body through open body cavities.

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Immune and Lymphatic Systems Anatomy Pictures and ...

"Inbred" redirects here. For the 2011 British film, see Inbred (film).

Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically, in contrast to outcrossing, which refers to mating unrelated individuals.[1] By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and other consequences that may arise from incestuous sexual relationships and consanguinity.

Inbreeding results in homozygosity, which can increase the chances of offspring being affected by recessive or deleterious traits.[2] This generally leads to a decreased biological fitness of a population[3][4] (called inbreeding depression), which is its ability to survive and reproduce. An individual who inherits such deleterious traits is referred to as inbred. The avoidance of such deleterious recessive alleles caused by inbreeding, via inbreeding avoidance mechanisms, is the main selective reason for outcrossing.[5][6] Crossbreeding between populations also often has positive effects on fitness-related traits.[7]

Inbreeding is a technique used in selective breeding. In livestock breeding, breeders may use inbreeding when, for example, trying to establish a new and desirable trait in the stock, but will need to watch for undesirable characteristics in offspring, which can then be eliminated through further selective breeding or culling. Inbreeding is used to reveal deleterious recessive alleles, which can then be eliminated through assortative breeding or through culling. In plant breeding, inbred lines are used as stocks for the creation of hybrid lines to make use of the effects of heterosis. Inbreeding in plants also occurs naturally in the form of self-pollination.

Offspring of biologically related persons are subject to the possible impact of inbreeding, such as congenital birth defects. The chances of such disorders is increased the closer the relationship of the biological parents. (See coefficient of inbreeding.) This is because such pairings increase the proportion of homozygous zygotes in the offspring, in particular deleterious recessive alleles, which produce such disorders.[8] (See inbreeding depression.) Because most recessive alleles are rare in populations, it is unlikely that two unrelated marriage partners will both be carriers of the alleles. However, because close relatives share a large fraction of their alleles, the probability that any such deleterious allele is inherited from the common ancestor through both parents is increased dramatically. Contrary to common belief, inbreeding does not in itself alter allele frequencies, but rather increases the relative proportion of homozygotes to heterozygotes. However, because the increased proportion of deleterious homozygotes exposes the allele to natural selection, in the long run its frequency decreases more rapidly in inbred population. In the short term, incestuous reproduction is expected to produce increases in spontaneous abortions of zygotes, perinatal deaths, and postnatal offspring with birth defects.[9] The advantages of inbreeding may be the result of a tendency to preserve the structures of alleles interacting at different loci that have been adapted together by a common selective history.[10]

Malformations or harmful traits can stay within a population due to a high homozygosity rate and it will cause a population to become fixed for certain traits, like having too many bones in an area, like the vertebral column in wolves on Isle Royale or having cranial abnormalities in Northern elephant seals, where their cranial bone length in the lower mandibular tooth row has changed. Having a high homozygosity rate is bad for a population because it will unmask recessive deleterious alleles generated by mutations, reduce heterozygote advantage, and it is detrimental to the survival of small, endangered animal populations.[11] When there are deleterious recessive alleles in a population it can cause inbreeding depression. The authors think that it is possible that the severity of inbreeding depression can be diminished if natural selection can purge such alleles from populations during inbreeding.[12] If inbreeding depression can be diminished by natural selection than some traits, harmful or not, can be reduced and change the future outlook on a small, endangered populations.

There may also be other deleterious effects besides those caused by recessive diseases. Thus, similar immune systems may be more vulnerable to infectious diseases (see Major histocompatibility complex and sexual selection).[13]

Inbreeding history of the population should also be considered when discussing the variation in the severity of inbreeding depression between and within species. With persistent inbreeding, there is evidence that shows inbreeding depression becoming less severe. This is associated with the unmasking and eliminating of severely deleterious recessive alleles. It is not likely, though, that eliminating can be so complete that inbreeding depression is only a temporary phenomenon. Eliminating slightly deleterious mutations through inbreeding under moderate selection is not as effective. Fixation of alleles most likely occurs through Mullers Ratchet, when an asexual populations genomes accumulate deleterious mutations that are irreversible.[14]

Autosomal recessive disorders occur in individuals who have two copies of the gene for a particular recessive genetic mutation.[15] Except in certain rare circumstances, such as new mutations or uniparental disomy, both parents of an individual with such a disorder will be carriers of the gene. These carriers do not display any signs of the mutation and may be unaware that they carry the mutated gene. Since relatives share a higher proportion of their genes than do unrelated people, it is more likely that related parents will both be carriers of the same recessive gene, and therefore their children are at a higher risk of a genetic disorder. The extent to which the risk increases depends on the degree of genetic relationship between the parents: The risk is greater when the parents are close relatives and lower for relationships between more distant relatives, such as second cousins, though still greater than for the general population.[16] A study has provided the evidence for inbreeding depression on cognitive abilities among children, with high frequency of mental retardation among offspring in proportion to their increasing inbreeding coefficients.[17]

Children of parent-child or sibling-sibling unions are at increased risk compared to cousin-cousin unions.[18]

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Inbreeding - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

If you are looking for an eye doctor for a person with autism or suspected autism spectrum disorders, locate a behavioral or neuro-developmental optometrist and ask the following questions before scheduling the eye examination: (1) Does the optometrist (1) have experience in evaluating the vision of a non-verbal and/or autistic person? and (2) If appropriate to the individual case, does the optometrist offer special corrective lenses for autistic individuals (i.e., prisms, microprisms, colored lenses and/or filters)? Prior to using the special ambient lenses, Zarin had a problem with spatial awareness. He would bang through doorways and slam through people...he doesn't do that anymore ... his gait has changed ... his ability to express himself, it is much better now ... [More]

We thought his eye movements and eye symptoms were just part of his autism, but...with vision therapy treatment, many of his so-called "autistic" behaviors stopped, and he was also able to read much easier (no more double vision!)... [More]

I am the parent of an autistic child. Too often, visual problems which would have been detected early in non-disabled children go undiagnosed and untreated for children with disabilities ... Don't assume that your child can't be tested ... [More]

He had only had his special prescription eyeglasses for thirty minutes and already our lives were changed ... Jimmy began to visually investigate his immediate environment ... he makes eye contact while communicating ... was basically non-verbal a year ago, and now uses speech to communicate ...all of his other therapies have benefited from vision therapy as well his progress in speech therapy which has sky rocketed! [More]

Since beginning Vision Therapy, she has been able to remain in control (with reminders to stay focused) and sit on her own with others for as long as 30 minutes, this is something she could not do 7 months ago. [More]

... Evelyn is now a year ahead of her chronological age in vision skills! [More]

Donna Williams, a well-known author with autism ... stated that when she put on her glasses for the first time, "the room didn't seem so crowded, overwhelming or bombarding. The background noise I had always heard before was not even apparent." [More]

The poor eye contact, toe walking, and odd neck and body postures of many autistic individuals may be due to vision problems, according to a study that suggests that these abnormal symptoms can be reduced by corrective lenses. [More]

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I am the parent of an autistic child.

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Autism Spectrum Disorders, Vision, and Eyesight - Autistic ...

By Judith Sachs WebMD Feature

Reviewed by Arnold Wax, MD

WebMD Archive

Having a stem-cell transplant is a major challenge for your body. As you recover in the first weeks and months, you are likely to feel fatigued and weak. Certain side effects, like flu-like symptoms, nausea, and a changed sense of taste, are common. Try to be patient: You're building a brand-new immune system, and this takes time. Your doctors will monitor you closely and give you medications to prevent problems.

Along with these typical side effects, you may experience complications. Some come from the high-dose chemotherapy and radiation that may be part of the transplant process. (These may be less likely if you have had a "mini-transplant" with low-dose chemotherapy and radiation.) Other complications are caused by your body's attempts to reject donor stem cells.

Overview

Laetrile is a compound that contains a chemical called amygdalin. Amygdalin is found in the pits of many fruits, raw nuts, and plants (see Question 1). It is believed that the active anticancer ingredient in laetrile is cyanide (see Question 1). Laetrile is given by mouth as a pill or by intravenous injection (see Question 4). Laetrile has shown little anticancer effect in laboratory studies, animal studies, or human studies (see Question 5 and Question 6). The side effects of laetrile...

Read the Overview article > >

The most common complications are:

Less often, some patients experience cataracts, infertility (if total-body radiation is given), and new, secondary cancers, sometimes as long as a decade after the original cancer.

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Complications of Stem Cell Transplants - WebMD

For many years, researchers have been seeking to understand the body's ability to repair and replace the cells and tissues of some organs, but not others. After years of work pursuing the how and why of seemingly indiscriminant cell repair mechanisms, scientists have now focused their attention on adult stem cells. It has long been known that stem cells are capable of renewing themselves and that they can generate multiple cell types. Today, there is new evidence that stem cells are present in far more tissues and organs than once thought and that these cells are capable of developing into more kinds of cells than previously imagined. Efforts are now underway to harness stem cells and to take advantage of this new found capability, with the goal of devising new and more effective treatments for a host of diseases and disabilities. What lies ahead for the use of adult stem cells is unknown, but it is certain that there are many research questions to be answered and that these answers hold great promise for the future.

Adult stem cells, like all stem cells, share at least two characteristics. First, they can make identical copies of themselves for long periods of time; this ability to proliferate is referred to as long-term self-renewal. Second, they can give rise to mature cell types that have characteristic morphologies (shapes) and specialized functions. Typically, stem cells generate an intermediate cell type or types before they achieve their fully differentiated state. The intermediate cell is called a precursor or progenitor cell. Progenitor or precursor cells in fetal or adult tissues are partly differentiated cells that divide and give rise to differentiated cells. Such cells are usually regarded as "committed" to differentiating along a particular cellular development pathway, although this characteristic may not be as definitive as once thought [82] (see Figure 4.1. Distinguishing Features of Progenitor/Precursor Cells and Stem Cells).

Figure 4.1. Distinguishing Features of Progenitor/Precursor Cells and Stem Cells. A stem cell is an unspecialized cell that is capable of replicating or self renewing itself and developing into specialized cells of a variety of cell types. The product of a stem cell undergoing division is at least one additional stem cell that has the same capabilities of the originating cell. Shown here is an example of a hematopoietic stem cell producing a second generation stem cell and a neuron. A progenitor cell (also known as a precursor cell) is unspecialized or has partial characteristics of a specialized cell that is capable of undergoing cell division and yielding two specialized cells. Shown here is an example of a myeloid progenitor/precursor undergoing cell division to yield two specialized cells (a neutrophil and a red blood cell).

( 2001 Terese Winslow, Lydia Kibiuk)

Adult stem cells are rare. Their primary functions are to maintain the steady state functioning of a cellcalled homeostasisand, with limitations, to replace cells that die because of injury or disease [44, 58]. For example, only an estimated 1 in 10,000 to 15,000 cells in the bone marrow is a hematopoietic (bloodforming) stem cell (HSC) [105]. Furthermore, adult stem cells are dispersed in tissues throughout the mature animal and behave very differently, depending on their local environment. For example, HSCs are constantly being generated in the bone marrow where they differentiate into mature types of blood cells. Indeed, the primary role of HSCs is to replace blood cells [26] (see Chapter 5. Hematopoietic Stem Cells). In contrast, stem cells in the small intestine are stationary, and are physically separated from the mature cell types they generate. Gut epithelial stem cells (or precursors) occur at the bases of cryptsdeep invaginations between the mature, differentiated epithelial cells that line the lumen of the intestine. These epithelial crypt cells divide fairly often, but remain part of the stationary group of cells they generate [93].

Unlike embryonic stem cells, which are defined by their origin (the inner cell mass of the blastocyst), adult stem cells share no such definitive means of characterization. In fact, no one knows the origin of adult stem cells in any mature tissue. Some have proposed that stem cells are somehow set aside during fetal development and restrained from differentiating. Definitions of adult stem cells vary in the scientific literature range from a simple description of the cells to a rigorous set of experimental criteria that must be met before characterizing a particular cell as an adult stem cell. Most of the information about adult stem cells comes from studies of mice. The list of adult tissues reported to contain stem cells is growing and includes bone marrow, peripheral blood, brain, spinal cord, dental pulp, blood vessels, skeletal muscle, epithelia of the skin and digestive system, cornea, retina, liver, and pancreas.

In order to be classified as an adult stem cell, the cell should be capable of self-renewal for the lifetime of the organism. This criterion, although fundamental to the nature of a stem cell, is difficult to prove in vivo. It is nearly impossible, in an organism as complex as a human, to design an experiment that will allow the fate of candidate adult stem cells to be identified in vivo and tracked over an individual's entire lifetime.

Ideally, adult stem cells should also be clonogenic. In other words, a single adult stem cell should be able to generate a line of genetically identical cells, which then gives rise to all the appropriate, differentiated cell types of the tissue in which it resides. Again, this property is difficult to demonstrate in vivo; in practice, scientists show either that a stem cell is clonogenic in vitro, or that a purified population of candidate stem cells can repopulate the tissue.

An adult stem cell should also be able to give rise to fully differentiated cells that have mature phenotypes, are fully integrated into the tissue, and are capable of specialized functions that are appropriate for the tissue. The term phenotype refers to all the observable characteristics of a cell (or organism); its shape (morphology); interactions with other cells and the non-cellular environment (also called the extracellular matrix); proteins that appear on the cell surface (surface markers); and the cell's behavior (e.g., secretion, contraction, synaptic transmission).

The majority of researchers who lay claim to having identified adult stem cells rely on two of these characteristicsappropriate cell morphology, and the demonstration that the resulting, differentiated cell types display surface markers that identify them as belonging to the tissue. Some studies demonstrate that the differentiated cells that are derived from adult stem cells are truly functional, and a few studies show that cells are integrated into the differentiated tissue in vivo and that they interact appropriately with neighboring cells. At present, there is, however, a paucity of research, with a few notable exceptions, in which researchers were able to conduct studies of genetically identical (clonal) stem cells. In order to fully characterize the regenerating and self-renewal capabilities of the adult stem cell, and therefore to truly harness its potential, it will be important to demonstrate that a single adult stem cell can, indeed, generate a line of genetically identical cells, which then gives rise to all the appropriate, differentiated cell types of the tissue in which it resides.

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4. The Adult Stem Cell [Stem Cell Information]

Autologous transplantation:patients receive their own stem cells after a course of myeloablative conditioning; about 12,000 are performed each year. Allogeneic transplantation:patients receive stem cells, bone marrow, or cord blood from a matched related or unrelated donor; about 8,000 are performed each year. Myeloablative conditioning:high-dose chemotherapy or total body irradiation given to kill cells in the bone marrow, including cancer cells, to prepare the body to receive healthy, autologous or allogeneic transplantations.

Although blood and marrow transplants can save patients lives, they can also result in numerous complications, including infections, renal failure, and liver complications, such as veno-occlusive disease (VOD). VOD can occur in as high as 70% of patients and is the most common hepatic complication in the immediate post-transplant period. Along with infections and graft-versus-host disease, it is also one of the most common causes of death after transplant.

In her article in the October 2012 issue of the Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing, Sosa describes VOD and its causes, risk factors, prevention, interventions, and treatment options. Although no U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved treatments currently exist for VOD, oncology nurses play a key role in early diagnosis and supportive care for patients with this complication.

VOD is not caused by the transplantation itself but rather the myeloablative conditioning regimen leading up to the procedure. Risk factors for VOD are outlined in Figure 1. Weight gain may occur before patients receive the actual transplant. Serum bilirubin often elevates to 2 mg/dl or higher within 610 days after the transplant, followed by edema and ascites. Patients may develop jaundice because of the increased bilirubin levels. If VOD is severe, weight gain and bilirubin levels increase at a faster rate.

Symptoms of VOD are not limited to the liver. Another indicator is increased platelet refractoriness, which may occur even before weight gain and liver enlargement are apparent. In addition, multiorgan failure may occur in severe cases. Serum creatinine may become elevated, resulting in renal failure, so patients may require hemodialysis. Because of fluid retention, patients may develop an enlarged heart, cardiac failure, or pleural effusions. As azotemia and hepatic encephalopathy develop, patients may experience confusion and altered mental status.

The gold standard for VOD diagnosis is histologically through a liver biopsy. However, the test can be dangerous in transplant recipients who are neutropenic or thrombocytopenic. Ultrasound is sometimes used as an alternative, but findings may be vague. Doppler ultrasound, which shows increased arterial resistance, may offer more specific results. Finally, differential diagnosis may be made based on clinical signs and symptoms.

Once VOD is diagnosed, it is classified according to severity.

Because no FDA-approved treatments currently exist for VOD, the nurses emphasis is on preventive measures and supportive care if VOD manifests.

Medications for prevention: When given as a low-dose continuous IV infusion starting before transplantation, heparin reduces the amount of clotting proteins in the hepatic venules. However, studies have not proven that it effectively prevents VOD.

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Veno-Occlusive Disease Is the Most Common Hepatic ...

Though great progress has been made in medicine, current evidence-based and palliative treatments are increasingly unable to keep pace with patients' needs, especially given our aging population. There are few effective ways to treat the root causes of many diseases, injuries and congenital conditions. In many cases, clinicians can only manage patients' symptoms using medications or devices.

Regenerative medicine is a game-changing area of medicine with the potential to fully heal damaged tissues and organs, offering solutions and hope for people who have conditions that today are beyond repair.

Regenerative medicine itself isn't new the first bone marrow and solid-organ transplants were done decades ago. But advances in developmental and cell biology, immunology, and other fields have unlocked new opportunities to refine existing regenerative therapies and develop novel ones.

The Center for Regenerative Medicine takes three interrelated approaches:

Rejuvenation. Rejuvenation means boosting the body's natural ability to heal itself. Though after a cut your skin heals within a few days, other organs don't repair themselves as readily.

But cells in the body once thought to be no longer able to divide (terminally differentiated) including the highly specialized cells constituting the heart, lungs and nerves have been shown to be able to remodel and possess some ability to self-heal. Teams within the center are studying how to enhance self-healing processes.

Replacement. Replacement involves using healthy cells, tissues or organs from a living or deceased donor to replace damaged ones. Organ transplants, such as heart and liver transplants, are good examples.

The center aims to expand opportunities for transplants by finding ways to overcome the ongoing donor shortage, the need for immunosuppression and challenges with organ rejection.

Regenerative medicine holds the promise of definitive, affordable health care solutions that heal the body from within.

Stem cells have the ability to develop through a process called differentiation into many different types of cells, such as skin cells, brain cells, lung cells and so on. Stem cells are a key component of regenerative medicine, as they open the door to new clinical applications.

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About Regenerative Medicine - Mayo Clinic

Preventive healthcare (alternately preventive medicine or prophylaxis) consists of measures taken for disease prevention, as opposed to disease treatment.[1][2] Just as health encompasses a variety of physical and mental states, so do disease and disability, which are affected by environmental factors, genetic predisposition, disease agents, and lifestyle choices. Health, disease, and disability are dynamic processes which begin before individuals realize they are affected. Disease prevention relies on anticipatory actions that can be categorized as primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention.[2]

Each year, millions of people die preventable deaths. A 2004 study showed that about half of all deaths in the United States in 2000 were due to preventable behaviors and exposures.[3] Leading causes included cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, unintentional injuries, diabetes, and certain infectious diseases.[3] This same study estimates that 400,000 people die each year in the United States due to poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle.[3] According to estimates made by the World Health Organization (WHO), about 55 million people died worldwide in 2011, two thirds of this group from non-communicable diseases, including cancer, diabetes, and chronic cardiovascular and lung diseases.[4] This is an increase from the year 2000, during which 60% of deaths were attributed to these diseases.[4] Preventive healthcare is especially important given the worldwide rise in prevalence of chronic diseases and deaths from these diseases.

There are many methods for prevention of disease. It is recommended that adults and children aim to visit their doctor for regular check-ups, even if they feel healthy, to perform disease screening, identify risk factors for disease, discuss tips for a healthy and balanced lifestyle, stay up to date with immunizations and boosters, and maintain a good relationship with a healthcare provider.[5] Some common disease screenings include checking for hypertension (high blood pressure), hyperglycemia (high blood sugar, a risk factor for diabetes mellitus), hypercholesterolemia (high blood cholesterol), screening for colon cancer, depression, HIV and other common types of sexually transmitted disease such as chlamydia, syphilis, and gonorrhea, mammography (to screen for breast cancer), colorectal cancer screening, a pap test (to check for cervical cancer), and screening for osteoporosis. Genetic testing can also be performed to screen for mutations that cause genetic disorders or predisposition to certain diseases such as breast or ovarian cancer.[5] However, these measures are not affordable for every individual and the cost effectiveness of preventive healthcare is still a topic of debate.[6][7]

Preventive healthcare strategies are typically described as taking place at the primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention levels. In the 1940s, Hugh R. Leavell and E. Gurney Clark coined the term primary prevention. They worked at the Harvard and Columbia University Schools of Public Health, respectively, and later expanded the levels to include secondary and tertiary prevention.[8] Goldston (1987) notes that these levels might be better described as "prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation"[8] though the terms primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention are still commonly in use today.

Primary prevention consists of "health promotion" and "specific protection."[1] Health promotion activities are non-clinical life choices, for example, eating nutritious meals and exercising daily, that both prevent disease and create a sense of overall well-being. Preventing disease and creating overall well-being, prolongs our life expectancy.[1][2] Health-promotional activities do not target a specific disease or condition but rather promote health and well-being on a very general level.[2] On the other hand, specific protection targets a type or group of diseases and complements the goals of health promotion.[1] In the case of a sexually transmitted disease such as syphilis health promotion activities would include avoiding microorganisms by maintaining personal hygiene, routine check-up appointments with the doctor, general sex education, etc. whereas specific protective measures would be using prophylactics (such as condoms) during sex and avoiding sexual promiscuity.[2]

Food is very much the most basic tool in preventive health care. The 2011 National Health Interview Survey performed by the Centers for Disease Control was the first national survey to include questions about ability to pay for food. Difficulty with paying for food, medicine, or both is a problem facing 1 out of 3 Americans. If better food options were available through food banks, soup kitchens, and other resources for low-income people, obesity and the chronic conditions that come along with it would be better controlled [10] A food desert is an area with restricted access to healthy foods due to a lack of supermarkets within a reasonable distance. These are often low-income neighborhoods with the majority of residents lacking transportation .[11] There have been several grassroots movements in the past 20 years to encourage urban gardening, such as the GreenThumb organization in New York City. Urban gardening uses vacant lots to grow food for a neighborhood and is cultivated by the local residents.[12] Mobile fresh markets are another resource for residents in a food desert, which are specially outfitted buses bringing affordable fresh fruits and vegetables to low-income neighborhoods. These programs often hold educational events as well such as cooking and nutrition guidance.[13] Programs such as these are helping to provide healthy, affordable foods to the people who need them the most.

Scientific advancements in genetics have significantly contributed to the knowledge of hereditary diseases and have facilitated great progress in specific protective measures in individuals who are carriers of a disease gene or have an increased predisposition to a specific disease. Genetic testing has allowed physicians to make quicker and more accurate diagnoses and has allowed for tailored treatments or personalized medicine.[2] Similarly, specific protective measures such as water purification, sewage treatment, and the development of personal hygienic routines (such as regular hand-washing) became mainstream upon the discovery of infectious disease agents such as bacteria. These discoveries have been instrumental in decreasing the rates of communicable diseases that are often spread in unsanitary conditions.[2]

Finally, a separate category of health promotion has been propounded, based on the 'new knowledge' in molecular biology - in particular epigenetics - which points to how much physical as well as affective environments during foetal and newborn life may determine adult health.[14] This is commonly called primal prevention. It involves providing future parents with pertinent, unbiased information on primal health and supporting them during their child's primal life (i.e., "from conception to first anniversary" according to definition by the Primal Health Research Centre, London). This includes adequate parental leave - ideally for both parents - with kin caregiving and financial help if needed.

Secondary prevention deals with latent diseases and attempts to prevent an asymptomatic disease from progressing to symptomatic disease.[1] Certain diseases can be classified as primary or secondary. This depends on definitions of what constitutes a disease, though, in general, primary prevention addresses the root cause of a disease or injury[1] whereas secondary prevention aims to detect and treat a disease early on.[15] Secondary prevention consists of "early diagnosis and prompt treatment" to contain the disease and prevent its spread to other individuals, and "disability limitation" to prevent potential future complications and disabilities from the disease.[2] For example, early diagnosis and prompt treatment for a syphilis patient would include a course of antibiotics to destroy the pathogen and screening and treatment of any infants born to syphilitic mothers. Disability limitation for syphilitic patients includes continued check-ups on the heart, cerebrospinal fluid, and central nervous system of patients to curb any damaging effects such as blindness or paralysis.[2]

Finally, tertiary prevention attempts to reduce the damage caused by symptomatic disease by focusing on mental, physical, and social rehabilitation. Unlike secondary prevention, which aims to prevent disability, the objective of tertiary prevention is to maximize the remaining capabilities and functions of an already disabled patient.[2] Goals of tertiary prevention include: preventing pain and damage, halting progression and complications from disease, and restoring the health and functions of the individuals affected by disease.[15] For syphilitic patients, rehabilitation includes measures to prevent complete disability from the disease, such as implementing work-place adjustments for the blind and paralyzed or providing counseling to restore normal daily functions to the greatest extent possible.[2]

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Preventive healthcare - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Chair: Iris A. Granek, MD, MS Vice Chair: Dorothy Lane, MD, MPH

The Department of Preventive Medicine is an independent clinical department within the School of Medicine of the Stony Brook University Medical Center. It was established when the medical school first opened in 1971 with goals and composition that were well aligned with the school's focus on community service and an interdisciplinary approach to research and teaching with faculty representing the clinical, social, and behavioral sciences, as well as the humanities.

With its population health perspective and focus on all aspects of preventing disease and disability, the Department has developed into an important force in establishing links with area-wide agencies such as the two county health departments. With health care reform and the current focus on prevention and population health, the Departments research activities are timely. These activities address understanding the multiple determinants of health and illness including social, behavioral, environmental, demographic, occupational, policy, economic, and genetic as well as effective medical and public health interventions.

The department applies its expertise toward three major goals:

The Department of Preventive Medicine's goals are accomplished through the work of the faculty and staff within its divisions and programs. There are five divisions:

Major Programs/Centers

Major programs include The Graduate Program in Public Health (GPPH); the Residency Program in General Preventive Medicine and Public Health; the Biostatistical Consulting Core; andtheCenter for Medical Humanities, Compassionate Care, and Bioethics.

Clinical Services

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Public Health Sciences is an academic department within Loyola Stritch School of Medicine. While the discipline of public health has traditionally been disconnected from clinical medicine it is now widely accepted that to meet the challenges of the 21st century we must create a health system where research, education and patient care function as a fully integrated whole. To achieve this goal we envision an array of multi-disciplinary programs that are capable of monitoring health trends and identifying disease-causing agents, assessing the medical care needs of populations, providing high quality preventive and curative treatment for everyone in our society, and measuring the outcomes of these interventions in the population and for individual patients. Reaching this goal is a formidable challenge for the United States, given our historically limited investment in public health, the fragmented system of health care currently in place, and our weak capacity to monitor quality and outcomes.

The Loyola Department of Public Health Sciences seeks to play a role in helping us reach this goal of a universal, integrated health system through research and teaching. In particular, we believe the need to address health inequalities among racial, ethnic and other marginalized populations is the most urgent challenge the US health system faces. Since its inception the Departments research and service has been largely focused on that challenge. Health inequalities do not stop at national borders and our Department also has a long tradition of global health research and education in public health.

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Stritch School of Medicine Department of Preventive ...