investigators

Geron: Stem cells repair heart attack damage

Tue, 28 Aug 2007 06:59:59 -0400

Researchers from Geron and the University of Washington have completed new animal studies that offer fresh evidence of the ability of embryonic stem cells to repair the damage done by a heart attack. The team injected cardiac cells taken from human ESCs and injected them into rats four days after a heart attack. Not only did the stem cells rebuild damaged heart muscles, they also improved the function of the entire heart.

In a noted achievement, the researchers turned human ESCs into cardiac cells, or cardiomyocytes. This has been one of the toughest feats involved in stem cell research, and the investigators devised a culture technique that was effective in coaxing human ESCs to transform into cardiomyocytes with 90 percent accuracy. Pigs and sheep are next in line for testing with human trials about two years away.

- check out the release
- and read the report on the study from the Financial Times

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Heart muscle created from embryonic stem cells. Report

Common virus is a culprit in obesity

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 06:59:59 -0400

Investigators have determined that a virus may play a key role in promoting obesity in some people. The researchers say that adenovirus-36--a well known respiratory virus--turns adult stem cells under the skin into fat cells when they are infected. And these fat cells accumulate fat at a fast rate. This isn't the sole cause of obesity, the scientists note, but the research does provide evidence that some cases of obesity can be linked to the virus. Other studies have reached similar conclusions, noting that about 30 percent of obese people have adenovirus-36 compared to 11 percent of lean people studied. And animal studies have linked adenovirus-36 and two other viruses to obesity as well. The theory is that exposure to the respiratory virus combined with a lack of exercise promotes obesity. This research points to new ways to control weight rather than relying solely on diet, exercise and surgery. The research was presented at a meeting of the American Chemical Society.

- see the release on the findings
- read the report from The Independent

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First gene therapy for eye disease may offer a cure

Mon, 21 May 2007 20:01:39 -0400

Robin Ali, a professor of human molecular genetics at University College London, is leading the world's first human trial of a gene therapy for an eye condition. A total of 12 patients with Leber's Congenital Amaurocis are being treated in the trial. Their photoreceptor cells misfunction due to a faulty RPE65 gene. That is an extremely rare condition, but investigators say that if this trial works they'll be able to use a similar approach to treating about 100 single-gene sight disorders involving far larger numbers of patients. There are now a number of gene therapy studies which are moving from the lab into the clinic. That's a critical milestone for a field that has been regularly plagued by safety concerns. Now Ali and other researchers say they're on their way to putting those old fears into the past as they look forward to new therapies that offer cures.

- here's the report on the project from Time

Number of minority researchers at NIH drops

Wed, 07 Feb 2007 19:01:39 -0500

Minorities may suffer disproportionately from a wide number of afflictions, but they are noticeably lacking among the ranks of the top research groups in the country. According to a recent survey, blacks make up 1 percent of the tenured and tenure-track researchers at the country's top 50 academic research centers. And that performance is reflected at the NIH, according to a commentary in The Scientist, which counts 1 percent of its tenured investigators and 1.5 percent of its tenure-track positions as African-American. Ten years ago, 2 percent of the NIH's researchers were African-American. That shortage is seen as a drag on the NIH's mandate to overcome health disparities in the U.S.

The number of African-Americans getting PhDs in the biological sciences has grown from 78 in 1994 to 136 in 2001. Among Hispanic Americans the number of PhDs grew from 131 to 164 and the number of tenured Hispanic investigators grew from 17 to 24.

- here's the commentary from The Scientist

ALSO: An African-American stem cell scientist at MIT has gone on a hunger strike after his appeal to be given tenure was denied. Colleagues denied that the decision was based on racism. Report

Related Articles:
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New study to use stem cells after heart attacks

Wed, 08 Nov 2006 19:01:39 -0500

Doctors in the UK are preparing to begin a study to see whether injecting stem cells harvested from a patient's bone marrow can repair the damage on heart muscle inflicted by a heart attack. The injections will be given within five hours of a heart attack, a critical period in the eyes of investigators. Doctors will recruit 100 patients for the procedure, which will also include angioplasty to clear blocked arteries--a standard therapy in these cases. Earlier studies have demonstrated that injecting the stem cells into patients is a safe procedure and there is a growing body of evidence to suggest that stem cell therapy for tissue repair may eventually become common for heart attack victims. Researchers emphasize that they're simply looking to examine how patients respond, noting that approved therapies may still be some time away.

- check out the report on the research project from The Times

ALSO: Investigators say that injecting adult stem cells into specially engineered mice induce a group of them to start producing insulin. The theory is that injecting bone marrow stem cells into people will repair their pancreas, allowing them to make insulin. Report