Posted on 11/14/2005 7:07:23 PM PST by DaveLoneRanger
Tampa, FL (Nov. 12, 2005) -- An experimental treatment that spares disability from acute stroke may be delivered much later than the current three-hour treatment standard – a potential advance needed to benefit more stroke victims.
Researchers at the University of South Florida found that human umbilical cord blood cells administered to rats two days following a stroke greatly curbed the brain's inflammatory response, reducing the size of the stroke and resulting in greatly improved recovery. The rats' inflammatory response to injury from stroke peaked 48 hours after the brain attack, which was when intravenous delivery of the cells appeared most beneficial.
"We were very surprised," said principal investigator Alison Willing, PhD, a neuroscientist at the USF Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair. "In some animals, the stroke initially damaged half the brain, but after treatment with the cord blood cells they were functioning normally.
"These findings show we are able to rescue neurons at a time when most research suggests they are already dead."
Dr. Willing presented the preliminary findings Nov. 12 at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in Washington, DC.
The only drug currently approved for ischemic stroke treatment is tPA (tissue plasminogen activator), which breaks up blood clots – the cause of most strokes. However, tPA must be given within three hours following a stroke to be effective and few patients arrive at the hospital quickly enough to receive it. Even when a patient meets the recommended three-hour treatment criteria, smaller hospitals often lack ready access to a CT scan, a test needed to rule out a hemorrhagic stroke caused by a burst blood vessel. The drug can worsen this less common type of stroke.
"New and more flexible treatments are needed to help more patients," Dr. Willing said. "Cord blood treatment in rats is successful in alleviating, even eliminating, the disabling effects of both ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. What's more, the treatment can be delivered much later than the current strict three-hour therapeutic window."
The USF study challenges the notion that nerve cells inevitably die quickly in the core region of the brain most severely deprived of oxygen and nutrients when a stroke hits. Instead, the researchers suggest, many nerve cells within ground zero of the attack, like those in mild to moderately damaged outlying areas, may succumb over several days through a slower, more orderly process known as apoptosis, or programmed cell death.
"This delayed death would permit more time to deliver neuron-sparing treatments than originally thought," Dr. Willing said.
The USF researchers continue to investigate the ways cord blood cells aid stroke recovery in animals, and will begin a study to determine the timing of brain inflammatory responses in acute stroke patients.
Researchers working with Dr. Willing were Jennifer Newcomb, Ted Ajmo, Lisa Collier, Cyndy Davis Sanberg, PhD; Keith Pennypacker, PhD; and Paul R. Sanberg, PhD, DSc. The USF study was conducted with Saneron CCEL Therapeutics, a USF-spinout biotechnology company developing cell therapies for deadly and debilitating disorders. Dr. Sanberg is a cofounder of Saneron CCEL, and Dr. Willing is a consultant.
fyi...
I'll bet adult cells could be used for the same results, after some study. I've been faborably impressed with progress in the adult stem cell area, and that keeps us far removed from the reproductive end of things.
But the thing about it is that cord blood is easy and painless. Just ask the parents, "May we harvest some of this cord blood so that it might be in research or to help someone else?", and I'll bet that a great number of them will say "Yes, of course".
I'm sure they would too, but what this buttresses is the idea that adult is good, umbelical is better and aborted is best.
I'd like to break up that chain if possible. I understand your logic and don't disagree on point.
The plain facts of the matter are that adult stem cells have been shown to have produced some results; embyonic stem cells have produced no hopeful results at all and yet the immoral coalition still continues to push for the abiliti to try to get some results instead of focusing on the promises implied in adult stem cell research...
Immunologically, I'm stunned!
ping
Excerpt: When injected into rats' hearts soon after a heart attack, stem cells taken from human umbilical cord blood (HUCB) greatly reduced the size of heart damage and restored pumping function to near normal. This improvement occurred without the need for drugs to prevent the rats' immune system from rejecting the human cells.
Alison E. Willing was part of the team on this study, also.
Anybody see the freaks that EAT the placenta?
Usually, it's a group of Womyn (their preferred spelling) who get together and fry up the placenta. Than, they all stand around the appetizer talking about Mother Gaya and all the crap. Disgusting.
ping
Thanks for that link!
Fantastic news! But what a horrible day for liberals. Imagine, saving lives and improving the quality of life without killing the unborn.
Thank you. I hope you can post it for us to review.
Yesterday there was an announcement that they were treating heart attack patients with their own ADULT stem cells and achieving much quicker recovery times.
'Tis a pity that some folks would have us waste time and money chasing down the false rabbit trail of embryonic stem cells.
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