Cord Blood News Volume 3.02 | Jan 20 2011

Successful Sustained Engraftment After Reduced-Intensity Umbilical Cord Blood Transplantation for Adult Patients with Severe Aplastic Anemia
Results indicate that unrelated umbilical cord blood transplantation after a reduced-intensity conditioning regimen may become a viable therapeutic option for adult severe aplastic anemia patients who lack suitable HLA-matched donors and fail immunosuppressive therapy. [Blood]

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Does Our DNA Determine How Well We Respond to Stem Cell Transplantation?
Do genetic variations in DNA determine the outcome and success in patients who undergo stem cell transplantation to treat blood cancers and predict complications? The National Heart, Blood and Lung Institute of the National Institutes of Health has awarded a $4.3 million, four-year grant to Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center to help find out. [Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Press Release]

CD8+ CD44hi but not CD4+ CD44hi Memory T Cells Mediate Potent Graft Anti-Lymphoma Activity Without GVHD
The goal of the current murine study was to select a freshly isolated donor T cell subset for infusion that separates anti-lymphoma activity from GVHD, and to determine whether the selected subset can effectively prevent or treat progressive growth of the BCL₁ lymphoma without GVHD after recipients are given T cell depleted bone marrow transplants from MHC mismatched donors. [Blood]

CD34+ Hematopoietic Precursors Are Present in Human Decidua and Differentiate into Natural Killer Cells Upon Interaction with Stromal Cells
Researchers discovered CD34+ hematopoietic precursors in human decidua (dCD34+). They show that dCD34+ cells differ from cord blood- or peripheral blood-derived CD34+ precursors. [Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A]
 
Efficient Human iPS Cell Derivation by a Non-Integrating Plasmid from Blood Cells with Unique Epigenetic and Gene Expression Signatures
The analysis suggested that newborn cord blood and adult peripheral blood mononuclear cells (MNCs) display unique signatures that are closer to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) than age-matched fibroblasts to iPSCs/ESCs, thus making blood MNCs an attractive cell choice for the generation of integration-free iPSCs. [Cell Res]

Functional Comparison and Expression Profiling of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell- and Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Endothelial Cells
The analysis demonstrates that gene expression variation of human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)- endothelial cells (ECs) and human embryonic stem cell (hESC)-ECs contributes significantly to biological differences between hiPSC-ECs and hESC-ECs, as well as the “distances” among hiPSCs, hESCs, hiPSC-ECs, hESC-ECs, and human umbilical vein endothelial cells. [Stem Cells Dev]

Cord Blood Transplantation and Stem Cell Regenerative Potential
Researchers summarize the most recent updates on clinical applications of cord blood transplantation, and the promises and limitations of cell-based therapies for tissue repair and regeneration. [Exp Hematol]

High-Dose Chemotherapy and ASCT in Elderly Patients with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
The study suggests that ASCT is feasible for selected elderly patients with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, giving similar results to younger patients in terms of survival and toxicity. [Bone Marrow Transplant]

Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells Reduce the Antitumor Activity of Cytokine-Induced Killer/Natural Killer Cells in K562 NOD/SCID Mice
The aim of this study was to investigate the influences of mesenchymal stem cells infused via different paths and at different times on the antitumor activities of cytokine-induced killer/NK cells derived from umbilical cord blood in K562 NOD/SCID mice. [Ann Hematol]
 
Cotransplantation of Human Umbilical Cord Blood-Derived Stromal Cells Enhances Hematopoietic Reconstitution and Engraftment in Irradiated BABL/c Mice
Given the unique role of human umbilical cord blood-derived stromal cells in megakaryocytopoiesis in vitro, researchers further investigated their effects in vivo on hematopoiesis in the setting of hematopoietic stem cell transplants. [Cancer Biol Ther]

NeoStem Acquires Progenitor Cell Therapy
NeoStem, Inc. and Progenitor Cell Therapy LLC announced the closing of their previously announced merger transaction. [NeoStem, Inc. Press Release]

A United and Powerful Initiative Launched to Strengthen the UK Economy
LifeSciencesUK, a new initiative representing the human healthcare industry, has been launched by the UK’s four key healthcare trade associations to build on the government’s commitment to transform the life sciences environment in the UK. [LifeSciencesUK Press Release]

National Marrow Donor Program Selects Velos Inc. for Its New Clinical Data Repository System
The National Marrow Donor Program® announced that it has selected Velos Inc., a leading California health care software provider, to supply its new Product Fulfillment and Clinical Data Repository System. It will serve as an enhanced electronic medical record system and is integral to conducting many of the process transactions that support bone marrow and umbilical cord blood transplants between donors and patients. [PR Newswire]

Director of Oncology Basic Research at the John Theurer Cancer Center Continues Research Aimed at Improving Allogeneic Blood and Marrow Transplantation
Thea Friedman, M.D., associate scientist and director of oncology basic research at the John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center was recently awarded a National Institutes of Health-National Cancer Institute RO1 research grant to improve allogeneic blood and marrow transplantation for multiple myeloma patients. [John Theurer Cancer Center Press Release]

Pluristem on Track to Proceed to a Phase II/III Clinical Trial in Critical Limb Ischemia (CLI) Under a Joint FDA-EMA Protocol, and a Phase II Clinical Trial in Intermittent Claudication (IC)
Pluristem Therapeutics, Inc.  announced the successful completion of a parallel scientific advisory process with the European Medical Agencies (EMA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding the Company’s planned clinical development program for PLX-PAD. [Pluristem Therapeutics, Inc. Press Release]

Health Canada Requests Additional Information to Support Application for Approval of Prochymal 
Osiris Therapeutics, Inc. announced that Health Canada has requested additional information in support of the Company’s application for approval of Prochymal, a stem cell therapy, for the treatment of graft versus host disease. [Osiris Therapeutics, Inc. Press Release]

Cancer Research UK and Cancer Research Technology Establish Team of Stem Cell Experts to Beat Cancer
Cancer Research UK and its commercial arm, Cancer Research Technology, have established a team of scientists with expertise in cancer stem cell research to identify new targets to detect, monitor and treat cancer. The charity has hand-picked four world class research groups to collaborate on an initial two-year research project to unravel the role of cancer stem cells in the development, growth and spread of tumors in breast, prostate and head and neck cancers. [Cancer Research UK Press Release]

Web Blood Matching Service
An online matching service between donors and patients in need of a stem cell transplant is now available, Shanghai Cord Blood Bank announced. [Shanghai Daily]

National Institutes of Health (United States)

Food and Drug Administration (United States)

Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (United States)
 
European Medicines Agency (European Union)
 
Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (United Kingdom)

Therapeutic Goods Administration (Australia)

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