News

Sep 2018   The bioengineering approach to MSC expansion to is to culture the cells in bioreactors that hold carriers for growth of adherent cells. We are preparing a series of articles to examine the key parameters to be considered when developing an MSC manufacturing process based on microcarriers and bioreactors, and their potential impact on the final cell therapy product.

Aug 2018   New England Cord Blood Bank (NECBB) has built the largest network of partnerships across Latin America for parents who want United States storage of stem cells from cord blood, cord tissue, or dental pulp. NECBB has over two decades of experience offering families a combination of fertility services and stem cell storage.

Aug 2018   Nikoloz experienced dramatic improvements in his autism symptoms after intrathecal injections of his own cord blood stem cells. Nikoloz is an 8 year old boy who lives in Georgia. His parents stored his cord blood on the advice of their obstetrician. At the age of three years Nicoloz was diagnosed with childhood autism.  He could not speak even single words, he had frequent tantrums, and showed no interest in other children. After injections of his own cord blood stem cells, Nicoloz can now communicate in short sentences. He attends a regular school, where he is able to read, write, paint, and solve arithmetical problems. The treatment of Nicoloz is part of an ongoing study at the family cord blood bank Geocord.

Aug 2018   Cell therapy with both cord blood and MSC has demonstrated improvements for cerebral palsy patients in clinical trials against controls. It is no longer a question of whether cell therapy works, it is a question of which cell therapy works best. In this article we compare two studies with MSC and note that the trial using intrathecal delivery produced a three times bigger improvement in gross motor function scores than intravenous delivery, despite requiring on average of six times fewer cells.

Jul 2018   Midwives in the UK can make a difference by learning how umbilical cord blood can save lives and by becoming active in cord blood collection programs. The United Kingdom lags behind other countries in umbilical cord blood banking. Continung medical education can help to close this gap by teaching healthcare providers more about cord blood therapies and the benefits of participating in cord blood collection programs.

Jul 2018   LifeCell’s Community Stem Cell Bank solves all of the problems of India's public cord blood banks. Parents contribute their baby’s cord blood stem cells to a common pool for use by themselves and other members of the community. Payment is made at the time of joining so that retrieval of stem cells from the pool is free of cost. LifeCell's Community Bank is already big enough to provide minimum matches to 96% of Indian patients.

Jul 2018   La sangre del cordón umbilical de un bebé tiene el poder de salvar vidas. Al elegir almacenar la sangre del cordón umbilical, los padres podrian ayudar a su hijo/a, a un miembro de su familia o incluso a un desconocido. Consulte a su médico sobre sus opciones de almacenamiento de la sangre del cordón umbilical de su hijo/a.

Jun 2018   Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a type of brain damage caused by an interruption in the flow of oxygenated blood to a baby’s brain around the time of birth.  If you think your child may be experiencing developmental delays, it’s important to contact a healthcare professional as soon as possible. This way, the child can get assistance quickly in order to maximize their abilities and improve their quality of life.

Jun 2018   Life Line Stem Cell is the largest collector of donated after-birth blood and tissues in the United States. Operating at 38 birthing centers in Indiana, last year Life Line Stem Cell enabled over 30,000 mothers to donate cord blood and/or birth tissues.

Jun 2018   Regulatory criteria for the clinical use of cells obtained from the placenta should include testing for the presence of maternal cells.