Archive for June, 2024

The landscape of medical science and human longevity has witnessed a groundbreaking development in Australia with the recent cryogenic preservation of Southern Cryonics first client, aptly named Patient One. This milestone event has ignited a spectrum of discussions surrounding the science, ethics, and future implications of cryonics.

In May 2024, Southern Cryonics, headquartered in Holbrook, achieved a remarkable feat by cryogenically preserving Patient One, an octogenarian who breathed his last in a Sydney hospital. The journey towards cryonic suspension began immediately after his passing, marking a pivotal moment in the annals of cryonics history in the Southern Hemisphere.

Philip Rhoades, the facility manager at Southern Cryonics, provided insight into the meticulous procedures involved in the cryopreservation process. He described the intense preparation and execution required, underscoring the profound responsibility undertaken by the team to ensure the success of Patient Ones cryonic suspension.

The preservation process commenced with cooling the body to approximately 6 degrees Celsius in the hospitals cold room. Subsequently, at A OHare Funeral Directors, a cryoprotectant liquid was administered to prevent ice crystal formation, a crucial step in preserving cellular integrity. The body was then encased in dry ice, gradually reducing its temperature to minus 80 degrees Celsius before its transfer to Southern Cryonics Holbrook facility.

At the Holbrook site, the body underwent further cooling to minus 200 degrees Celsius using liquid nitrogen, culminating in its placement within a specialized vacuum storage vessel. This meticulous process, spanning over 10 hours, aimed to optimize the prospects of future revival, offering a glimmer of hope in the realm of life extension.

However, such groundbreaking endeavors in cryonics come at a considerable cost, with Patient Ones cryopreservation amounting to $170,000, in addition to fees for medical assistance during the preservation process. This financial investment underscores the profound belief in the transformative potential of cryonics, despite its speculative nature.

Cryonics, as a field dedicated to preserving human bodies at ultra-low temperatures in anticipation of future revival, remains both scientifically intriguing and ethically contentious. While proponents envision a future where medical advancements could reverse aging and disease, skeptics raise valid concerns regarding the feasibility and ethical implications of cryonic suspension.

Professor Bruce Thompson, head of the Melbourne School of Health Science, voiced skepticism about the feasibility of cryonics, likening it to Star Trek in play. He emphasized the significant challenges involved in reviving a cryonically preserved body, cautioning against unrealistic expectations.

Nevertheless, the future of cryonics holds promise, with Southern Cryonics Holbrook facility poised for expansion to accommodate a growing demand for cryonic preservation. The companys commitment to advancing cryonic research and technology underscores its dedication to exploring the frontiers of medical science and human longevity.

As the debate surrounding cryonics continues to evolve, it prompts reflection on the fundamental questions of life, death, and the human quest for immortality. While the feasibility of cryonic revival remains uncertain, the pursuit of scientific innovation and exploration knows no bounds, offering glimpses of hope for a future where the boundaries of life and death are redefined by the possibilities of tomorrow.

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Australian Cryonics Company Cryogenically Preserves First Client with Aim Of Bringing Him Back To Life In Future - NewsX

Science and technology are advancing significantly every day, and humanity continues to achieve new breakthroughs with each unveiling discovery. Another such field in which sizeable strides have been made is Cryonics.

In a recent development, a cryonics organization in Australia has recently cryogenically preserved its inaugural client with the aspiration of reviving him in the future. As reported by ABC News Australia, Southern Cryonics, the pioneer cryonics facility in the Southern Hemisphere, disclosed the cryopreservation of its first client at its Holbrook site.

The individual, an octogenarian male, passed away in Sydney before undergoing cryogenic freezing at a temperature of minus 200 degrees Celsius. He now represents what the company terms as Patient One.

(It was) very stressful, Southern Cryonics facility manager Philip Rhoades expressed, as per the outlet.That was what was keeping me awake for a week because there are a number of different procedures to go through for different days, and there were a number of situations that might have gone wrong if we hadnt prepared properly, he added.

Mr. Rhoades mentioned that although his company had been poised and preparing to receive bodies from this year onwards, their initial client came as a somewhat unexpected development. There were a couple of other people who were existing members who we thought might be likely candidates for being the first but, as it turned out, it was someone who wasnt an existing member, Mr Rhoades said.

His family rang up out of the blue and we had about a week to prepare and get organized, the manager stated. He explained that his team then tested all the cryonics equipment and were mostly prepared. But its still a little bit different when you are doing a real case, he said.

As per media sources, Patient One passed away on May 12 at a hospital in Sydney. Following his demise, the preservation process aimed at potentially reviving him commenced promptly, spanning ten hours. Initially, his body was transferred to the hospitals cold storage facility and surrounded with ice to reduce its temperature to approximately 6 degrees Celsius. Subsequently, doctors administered a liquid solution, functioning as a form of anti-freeze, throughout the body to aid in cell preservation and further lower its temperature.

Following these initial steps, the patient was enveloped in a specialized sleeping bag and surrounded by dry ice. This procedure brought his body temperature down to approximately minus 80 degrees Celsius. The subsequent day, he was transported to Southern Cryonics Holbrook facility, where he remained stored on dry ice until a shipment of liquid nitrogen was received. Upon its arrival, the mans temperature was further decreased to minus 200 degrees Celsius before being placed into a designated tank, functioning as a vacuum storage pod.

Reportedly, the entire procedure amounted to $170,000 for the client, inclusive of additional charges for medical teams aiding in the preservation process. According to the outlet, this 10-hour process is intended to enhance the chances of the individuals potential revival, as stated by the company.

In addition, its worth noting that the Holbrook facility presently possesses a single dewar capable of accommodating four bodies. However, it has the capacity to house up to 40 bodies, with potential for expansion, a need the company anticipates arising soon.

Cryonics is a procedure that involves freezing an individual after their death, with the ultimate goal of reviving them at a later point in time. The word Cryonics is derived from the Greek word Kryos which translates to icy cold. Crynonics involves freezing at very low temperatures usually around 196 C or 320.8 F or 77.1 K.

Cryonic preservation is conducted exclusively following the legal declaration of an individuals death. The process commences shortly after death, with the body being surrounded by ice and transported to a cryonics facility. At the facility, blood is removed from the body and substituted with antifreeze and organ-preserving compounds, referred to as cryoprotective agents. In this vitrified condition, the body is positioned in a chamber containing liquid nitrogen, where it theoretically remains preserved at -196 C until scientists develop the means to revive the body in the future.

The concept of cryonic preservation gained prominence through The Prospect of Immortality, a book authored by Robert Ettinger, first released in 1962 and formally published in 1964. Ettinger later earned recognition as the father of cryonics. Following his demise in 2011, his body underwent cryonic preservation and was housed at the Cryonics Institute in Clinton Township, Michigan.

The mainstream scientific community often greets cryonics with skepticism, commonly considering it a pseudoscience and questioning its validity. Furthermore, the practice of cryonics has frequently been criticized and labeled as quackery, reflecting doubts about its scientific basis and effectiveness.

We have come across the practice of cryonics in various sci-fi and space exploration movies. One good example of this would be Christopher Nolans Interstellar where the astronauts are poised to go for a long dive in space and in order to preserve their bodies from the effects of time they dive into a deep sleep in their cryogenic chambers that apparently preserve their bodies. This is the most common premise with which most cryo-tech these days is being advanced.

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Australian Cryonics Breakthrough: First Client Frozen, Awaiting Future Resurrection - NewsX

Under the terms of the agreement, Shinobi will combine its iPS-T cell platform with Anoccas TCR discovery platform to create a new class of TCR-iPS-Ts.

Anoccas platform allows the scale-out of TCR-T development and delivers libraries of clinical candidate TCRs that span multiple solid tumor cancer targets across broad patient segments, Reagan Jarvis, CEO of Anocca told BioProcess Insider.

By combining Anocca TCRs with the Shinobi Katana platform, we envision a rapid, efficient, novel and transformative product manufacture modality. Under this antigenic targets on a patients tumor are matched with Anoccas TCR library and introduced in a plug-and-play' manner into clinic-ready Shinobi iPS-T-cells. We anticipate delivering initial validatory data within the first year of the partnership and this will form the springboard for further validation and product development over the coming years.

Anocca TCR platform is designed to recreate human T-cell biology in the lab to precisely map T-cell targets and identify highly specific and potent TCRs. The platform uses advanced tests with programmable human cells to carefully analyze and find real disease targets and the specific T-cell receptors that recognize them, according to the company.

Meanwhile, Shinobis Katana platform is said to enable rapid pipeline creation by driving iPS-T cell differentiation without defining antigen specificity. This allows the development of an immune evasive CD8ab iPS-T cell platform that can then be armed with any receptor. CD8ab iPS-T cells are critical class I-restricted T cells responsible for killing cancerous or virally infected cells and mediating adaptive immunity.

Our Katana technology allows us to have a fully engineered CD8ab iPS-T cell which can then be modified to efficiently introduce a CAR or TCR in a plug-and-play manner, Dan Kemp, CEO of Shinobi told us.

Key challenges in the development of off-the-shelf TCR-iPS-T cell therapies are production and robustness of the process to differentiate the cell phenotype and the ability to produce cells at scale. From Anoccas perspective, we have been impressed by the Shinobi platform and its potential to deliver against these criteria. Our partnership is aimed at addressing these key challenges in a stepwise manner.

The financials of this partnership have not been disclosed.

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Shinobi and Anocca to advance cancer killing iPS-T cell therapies - BioProcess Insider

SDERTLJE, Sweden and SAN FRANCISCO and KYOTO, Japan, May 30, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Anocca AB (Anocca), a leading T-cell receptor-engineered T-cell (TCR-T) therapeutics company, and Shinobi Therapeutics (Shinobi), developer of immune-evasive induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived CD8 T-cell therapies (iPS-T), today announced a strategic partnership to use Shinobis proprietary immune evasive iPS-T cell platform with novel candidate TCRs, discovered and validated by Anocca, to develop a new class of off-the-shelf allogeneic TCR engineered iPS-T-cell therapies (TCR-iPS-T) for solid tumors.

Anocca has made tremendous progress using our unique technology platform to systematically map cancer targets and build potent and highly specific TCR libraries to deliver personalized TCR-T treatments. As we prepare to progress our first gene-edited autologous TCR-T product into the clinic, we are excited to partner with Shinobi and work together to develop innovative off-the-shelf TCR-T cell therapies, said Anoccas CEO and co-founder, Reagan Jarvis. Shinobis Katana platform has the potential to offer treatment options for most cancer patients when combined with Anoccas ability to systematically unlock the largely unexploited landscape of TCR-T targets.

Combining Shinobis immune evasive iPS-T cell platform with Anoccas world-class TCR discovery platform will accelerate our mission of building a comprehensive pipeline of TCR and CAR-targeted off-the-shelf T-cell therapies, said Dan Kemp, Shinobis CEO. This is an ideal partnership between two emerging biotechs where the alignment of our technologies could realize a shared goal of making transformative TCR-iPS-T cell therapies and making them accessible to cancer patients on a global scale.

Shinobis Katana technology specifically enables the efficient introduction of antigen-targeting TCR and/or CAR constructs into its immune evasive iPS-T cells in a plug-and-play manner. Anocca has developed a unique deep-tech discovery platform that uses programmable human cells to recreate and manipulate T-cell immunity and deliver libraries of highly specific, clinically deployable TCR candidates for the treatment of solid cancers. In this joint program, Shinobi and Anocca will work together to produce TCR engineered CD8 iPS-T-cells against validated cancer targets and deliver pre-clinical proof of concept. A successful outcome will pave the way for the development of novel off-the-shelf treatments in solid tumor indications for the broadest patient populations.

Notes to editors

About Shinobi Therapeutics Shinobi Therapeutics is a biotechnology company developing a new class of off-the-shelf immune evasive iPSC-derived cell therapies. Based on the research of scientific co-founders Shin Kaneko, M.D., Ph.D., at Kyoto University and Tobias Deuse, M.D., at University of California, San Francisco, Shinobi has created a new allogeneic CD8 iPS-T-cell platform that demonstrates comprehensive immune evasion from all arms of the immune system. For more information, please visit http://www.shinobitx.com.

About Anocca Anocca is a biotechnology company developing libraries of T-cell receptor-engineered T-cell (TCR-T) therapies to redefine the treatment of solid tumors. Its proprietary technologies have been designed to vastly expand TCR-T development, allowing the systematic generation of treatments for the broadest patient populations that equip the immune system against the most difficult to treat solid tumors.

Anocca operates an advanced research and development infrastructure, underpinned by AnoccaOS, a custom software ecosystem, and in-house clinical manufacturing and process development facilities. Its unique discovery platform uses programmable human cells to recreate and manipulate T-cell immunity.

Follow Anocca onLinkedIn and visit http://www.anocca.com.

About Autologous and Allogeneic Cell Therapy Autologous cell therapy uses immune cells derived from a patient that are engineered and transferred back to the same patient, thus avoiding rejection by the patients own immune system. The current gold standard, autologous manufacture of cell therapy limits the type of patients that can be treated, as the patients own immune cells are used as the source of T-cells to modify. Allogeneic cell therapy, utilizing iPS cell-derived immune cells, is an attractive alternative as production of allogeneic immune cells can be scaled up and made available off-the-shelf, without the need to modify a patients immune cells. However, a major challenge in current allogeneic approaches is allo-rejection, as the patients' immune systems reject donor-derived and engineered cells as foreign invaders.

Media Inquiries

Anocca AB Mark Farmery, CDO media@anocca.com

Scius Communications (for Anocca AB) Katja Stout Tel: +44 7789 435 990 katja@sciuscommunications.com

Daniel Gooch Tel: +44 7747 875 479 daniel@sciuscommunications.com

Shinobi Therapeutics Molly Cole molly.cole@shinobitx.com

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Anocca AB and Shinobi Therapeutics Announce Strategic Partnership to Develop Allogeneic TCR-T Cell Therapies in ... - GlobeNewswire

Last year, startup Pairwise started selling the first food in the US made with Crispr technology: a new type of mustard greens with an adjusted flavor. But chances are, most consumers never got to sample them. The company introduced the greens to the food service industryselect restaurants, cafeterias, hotels, retirement centers, and caterersin just a few cities. A single grocery store in New York City also stocked them.

Now, biotech giant Bayer has licensed the greens from Pairwise and plans to distribute them to grocery stores across the country. We hope to have product reaching kitchen and dinner tables in the fall of this year, says Anne Williams, head of protected crops in Bayers vegetable seeds division. She says Bayer is currently talking to farms and salad companies on how best to grow and package the greens.

Pairwise was looking to make salads more appetizing and nutritious, and the company targeted mustard greens because of their high nutritional value, which is similar to kale. But their peppery, bitter taste means theyre not often eaten raw. Instead, theyre usually cooked to make them more palatable. Pairwise aimed to tone down the flavor while keeping all the fiber, antioxidants, and other nutrients that mustard greens offer. The company used Crispr to remove several copies of a gene responsible for their pungency. We think people will really like the taste, Williams says.

Pairwise previously took the greens to farmers markets for taste-test trials and explained to shoppers that they were made with gene editing. Tasters were generally positive about the greens, according to Pairwise CEO Tom Adams. The company is now turning its attention to developing pitless cherries and seedless blackberries. We see our role in the food chain as inventing new products, he says.

The first Crispr-edited food available to consumers debuted in Japan in 2021 when Tokyo-based startup Sanatech Seed began selling a tomato with high levels of -aminobutyric acid, or GABA, a chemical made in the brain and also found naturally in some foods. The company claims that GABA can help lower blood pressure and promote relaxation.

At a May 28 event in the Netherlands, Sanatech president Shimpei Takeshita said the company has expanded distribution in Japan and has completed all the regulatory paperwork to introduce its tomato in the Philippines. Its also looking to bring its edited tomato to the US.

The mustard greens and high GABA tomato arent exactly genetically modified organisms, or GMOsnot in the traditional sense, at least. Typically, GMOs are crops that contain added genetic material from a different species entirely. By contrast, gene editing involves modifying an organisms own DNA.

Williams describes Crispr as a tool that speeds up breeding new plants, allowing scientists to make changes that could conceivably happen in nature, just much faster. In the US, the Department of Agriculture has decided that crops made with gene editing dont have to go through a lengthy regulatory review, reasoning that they do not contain foreign DNA and could have otherwise been developed through conventional breedingthat is, choosing parent plants with certain characteristics to produce offspring with those traits.

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Gene-Edited Salad Greens Are Coming to US Stores This Fall - WIRED

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Immunopathological mechanisms and clinical manifestations of ocular graft-versus-host disease following ... - Nature.com

Leukemia is an overarching term encompassing several subtypes of blood cancers. Blood cells are produced in the bone marrow, the spongy material inside bones. The bone marrow contains immature stem cells that develop and mature to become red blood cells, platelets, or different types of white blood cells.

When mutations occur in bone marrow stem cells, it can interfere with the bodys normal production of blood cells. This can start as a disease or disorder classified as a pre-leukemia state (and may or may not progress to leukemia), or it can start as leukemia.

Fadi Haddad, M.D., assistant professor of Leukemia, walked us through a few updates in leukemia research being presented at the 2024 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting (ASCO).

Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) is a pre-leukemia state. Haddad explains, Myelo means related to the bone marrow, and dysplasia means abnormal growth. So, in patients with MDS, the bone marrow is abnormal. If left untreated, it could progress to acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

Azacitidine is approved as a treatment for MDS. Its given either as an intravenous (IV) infusion, or it's given as subcutaneous injections, meaning under the skin, says Haddad. Both options could be inconvenient for some patients. The IV infusion requires patients to come to the hospital repeatedly as long as they are receiving the treatment. The subcutaneous injections can be done at home, but they can cause hematomas and pain in the skin at the site of the injection. Compounding the inconvenience, patients may receive the treatment for several months or years.

In a study (Abstract 6509) presented by Guillermo Garcia-Manero, M.D., professor of Leukemia, researchers looked at the safety and efficacy of taking azacitidine orally, rather than via infusion or injection, for patients with low- or intermediate-risk MDS. While azacitidine taken orally is approved for maintenance therapy in patients with AML in remission, it is not currently approved for the treatment of MDS.

The study found that oral delivery of azacitidine had side effects similar to what weve seen with oral azacitidine in previous studies. The preliminary efficacy of the drug was also good. Close to 30% of patients saw hematologic improvement, which supports the continued evaluation of oral azacitidine in low- or intermediate-risk myelodysplastic syndrome, Haddad notes.

One area of interest in AML research is refining treatment both for older patients who need lower intensity treatment and for patients with AML that has come back (relapsed) or is not responding to treatment (refractory). The current standard of care is a combination of the drug venetoclax with either azacitidine or decitabine.

We've been investigating several compounds that are added to one of these combinations, Haddad notes. A study (Abstract 6511) presented by Maro Ohanian, D.O., associate professor of Leukemia, looks at the preliminary results of a clinical trial combining standard venetoclax and decitabine treatment with a new drug called BP1001. Adding BP1001 is supposed to enhance the cancer cell sensitivity to chemotherapy, so the effect of the chemotherapy will be stronger, says Haddad.

The study looked at this three-drug combination in older patients with newly diagnosed AML as well as in patients of all ages with relapsed or refractory AML. This triplet combination was safely administered to patients in both groups without new or unexpected toxicities, Haddad summarizes. The study is continuing enrollment and will expand to enroll more patients to collect data on efficacy.

Another treatment option for some subtypes of AML is a drug called gemtuzumab ozogamicin (GO). GO is a type of molecule known as an antibody drug conjugate. This means that two parts make up GO: an antibody that attaches to a biomarker on cancer cells and a chemotherapy drug. When we give patients this kind of treatment, the antibody attaches to the leukemia cell, and the drug enters the leukemia cell and leads to its death, Haddad explains.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved GO in 2017, but there have been concerns about side effects for patients who take GO and later receive bone marrow transplants. One of the side effects that we should pay attention to is hepatotoxicity negative impacts to the liver. In rare cases, it can cause hepatic veno-occlusive disease, or VOD. This is a very serious condition that can lead to liver failure if left untreated, says Haddad. Patients who take GO may be at a higher risk of developing VOD when they go on to receive bone marrow transplants.

To investigate these safety concerns, Partow Kebriaei, M.D., professor of Stem Cell Transplantation, led a multi-center effort to collect and analyze data (Abstract 6516) from adult patients with AML who received GO and went on to undergo bone marrow transplantation. The rates of VOD and the rates of mortality are similar to patients who got a transplant but did not take GO, says Haddad. This means the drug did not add much toxicity compared to what we see without the drug, and GO appears to be safe for use.

Two other research talks come from William Wierda, M.D., Ph.D., professor of Leukemia, and Julie Braish, M.D., a fellow in Leukemia. Wierda led the CAPTIVATE Phase II clinical trial (Abstract 7009). This trial looked at the combination of venetoclax and ibrutinib in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia and small lymphocytic lymphoma. Braish, working with Lucia Masarova, M.D., assistant professor of Leukemia, examined factors affecting outcomes in patients with myelofibrosis, another pre-leukemia state (Abstract 6514). These factors include the variant allele frequency of the JAK2 gene mutation and the presence or absence of cytopenias (lower than normal blood cell counts).

In addition to these presentations, MD Anderson researchers are giving two other oral presentations and numerous posters on leukemia research at the 2024 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting. Our presentations at ASCO represent the impact our research is having in pushing a really broad range of leukemia and pre-leukemia research and treatment forward, says Haddad.

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For some people with blood cancers who need a stem cell transplant, finding a donor who is an excellent match can mean the difference between life and death.

Unfortunately, even though there are more than 40 million potential donors in the national registry, finding a perfect match isnt always possible, especially in underrepresented racial and ethnic groups.

But a new approach using an old chemotherapy drug,cyclophosphamide, isis opening up new possibilities for people with cancers like leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. Researchers have found that by administering the drug several days after transplantation, people receiving blood stem cells from unrelated, partially matched donors can have survival rates comparable with those who received exactly matched cells.

[1]

This innovative approach can greatly expand patient access to safe and effective stem cell transplant, regardless of matching degree with the donor, says lead coauthor Monzr M. Al Malki, MD, a hematologist and oncologist and director of the Unrelated Donor BMT program at City of Hope, a cancer research and treatment organization with locations across the United States.

Thats exciting because it means more patients will be able to receive this potentially life-extending therapy, says Dr. Al Malki.

Donor compatibility is determined by a set of protein markers on blood cells called HLAs (human leukocyte antigens), says David Miklos, MD, a professor of medicine and chief of Stanford BMT and Cell Therapy Program at Stanford Medicine in California. Stanford was one of the medical sites of the trial, though Dr. Miklos is not a coauthor of the research.

[2]

[3]

Why was an exact match needed? Anything less increased the likelihood of a graft failure, as well as graft-versus-host disease meaning the transplanted cells attack the patients own, which can cause serious or even fatal complications, explains Miklos.

About a decade ago, researchers started using cyclophosphamide to destroy the parts of a persons immune system that would reject the transplant. That breakthrough allowed researchers to not only have better outcomes in fully matched donors, it also opened the door for successful transplants between people who were only partial matches.

[4]

The new study looked at cyclophosphamide treatment in patients receiving peripheral blood stem cell transplantation meaning healthy stem cells are harvested from a donors bloodstream, and then administered via infusion to the person with cancer.

Blood stem cell transplantation has largely replaced bone marrow transplantation, according to researchers.It's an easier way of collecting stem cells from donors, and its a little safer, because donors dont need to be under anesthesia as they would in bone marrow transplantation, says Al Malki.

For this part of the study, the researchers examined data from 70 adults who were 65 years old on average, all with advanced blood cancers. Participants received a reduced-intensity conditioning regimen to somewhat suppress their immune system to prepare them for transplantation, followed by an infusion stem cells from unrelated, partially matched donors.

The researchers reported an overall high survival rate of 79 percent at one year which is comparable to survival rates seen with fully matched donors.

The main side effect or risk of transplantation is graft-versus-host disease, says Al Malki. After one year, 51 percent of participants were free of the disease and had not relapsed, which is also comparable to what would be seen with fully matched donors, he says.

Historically, barriers in access to transplant have existed due to the low availability of matched, related sibling donors, as well as the substantial variance of matched, unrelated donor availability, especially for patients with diverse ancestry, says study coauthor Steven M. Devine, MD, chief medical officer of NMDP (formerly known as the National Marrow Donor Program and Be The Match).

These findings advance our ability to offer more options to patients without a fully matched donor, many of whom are ethnically diverse and have been underserved in receiving potentially lifesaving cell therapy, says Dr. Devine.

These findings are incredibly important and critical in the effort to improve existing inequities, says Miklos.

In the past, we could not bring some patients forward to receive this lifesaving therapy because they didnt have a compatible donor, but with the new approach of using post-transplant cyclophosphamide, all patients have donors now, he says.

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Cancer Patients Who Need Stem Cell Transplants May Have New Donor Options - Everyday Health

A potential therapy for Alzheimer's disease highlights the important role of the immune system and how stem cell transplants can help revitalize aging cells linked to the neurodegenerative disease in mice.

(CN) Scientists on Tuesday revealed how young bone marrow stem cell transplants could be the future of treating immune cells that assist with the progression of Alzheimers Disease.

The findings in Science Advances come from a team of Chinese researchers who successfully transplanted bone marrow from two-month-old mice to restore the immune systems of their older counterparts affected by genetic and pathological indicators of Alzheimers disease.

Alzheimers is a progressive and fatal neurological disease that commonly affects people over the age of 65. Prevailing Alzheimers research links the disease to the buildup of amyloid beta and tau proteins in the brain, though other recent studies have found that approximately half of the genes associated with Alzheimer's are directly involved with the immune system.

As the researchers explain in the study, aged immune systems undergo immunosenescence the gradual decline of immune cell production and functionality which partly derives from aging bone marrow hematopoietic stem cells and progenitor cells.

Progenitor cells develop or differentiate into a predetermined type of cell. Hematopoietic stem cells are the source of peripheral immune cells like monocytes, macrophages and dendritic cells all of which can assist in the progression of neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases when they reach the brain.

The process of immunosenescence thus drives systemic aging and contributes to an increased susceptibility to age-related diseases like Alzheimer's disease. Using this information, the team realized that replenishing bone marrow with young hematopoietic stem cells can rejuvenate older immune cells and intervene in Alzheimers symptoms.

And thats not all they found.

Our findings revealed that aging induced changes in the gene expression in both innate and adaptive immune cells, aligned with the dysfunction of both innate and adaptive immune responses observed in aging animals or elderly individuals, such as diminished phagocytosis function of monocytes, impaired antiviral immunity of [natural killer] cells, elevated production of autoantibodies by B cells and expansion of cytotoxic T cells, the authors wrote.

The team also found that the genetic markers associated with aging were enriched for Alzheimers-related pathways, indicating an active link between senescent or deteriorating peripheral immune cells and the development of Alzheimer's especially monocytes.

Monocytes are a type of white blood cell that can clear amyloid beta proteins in the brain and plasma through phagocytosis (kind of like a cellular version of Pac-Man). Aging, however, can impair this ability and accelerate the occurrence of Alzheimers.

The findings from this study suggest that the diminished monocytic A clearance capacity is a consequence of the downregulation of key receptors involved in A phagocytosis within aging monocytes, the authors wrote. Collectively, these pieces of evidence indicate that the senescence of peripheral immune cells plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of AD, and rejuvenating peripheral immune cells in aging individuals may represent a promising intervention strategy.

As for the therapeutic value of young bone marrow transplants, the authors say there are many.

Not only did the young bone marrow improve the physical and behavioral symptoms of Alzheimers in older mice, but it decreased amyloid beta levels, lowered cerebral amyloid beta plaque and improved the mices overall cognition.

The findings also suggest that transplants can reverse one-third of Alzheimers-related gene expression, alleviate aged pathways, restore altered cell-to-cell communication in aging peripheral blood mononuclear cells, rescue dysfunctional monocytic functions and reduce levels of secreted triggers from aging cells called blood senescence-associated secretory phenotype or SASP factors.

The authors added that since young bone marrow transplants enhance the overall phagocytosis of monocytes, the same intervention is worth exploring for mice targeted by tau proteins, the other hallmark of Alzheimers. Future studies, they wrote, could focus on exploring other new strategies that can rejuvenate immune cells to advance the possibility of clinical translation.

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Stem cell transplants deliver promising treatments for mice with Alzheimer's disease - Courthouse News Service

Study selection

From the initial literature search, we retrieved relevant 3948 records from PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and the Cochrane Library. After the title and abstract screening of them we screened the full text of 295 articles. Only nine studies met our criteria31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39. Figure1 shows the PRISMA flow diagram of our search and selection process.

The nine studies were RCTs and enrolled a total of 422 multiple sclerosis patients. All studies were parallel in design except 4 studies were cross-over RCTs31,32,34,39. These cross-over trials were reviewed up to the point of cross-over. All studies infused stem cells intravenously except Petrou et al. that included an additional intrathecal SCT subgroup32. This study showed that intrathecal SCT was more effective than intravenous SCT, but we pooled the data of both routes as single study data. Of the included studies, only two studies used autologous hematopoietic SCT (AHSCT) in addition to immune ablative regimen prior to the transplantation37,38. Burt et al. compared SCT to DMTs (natalizumab, fingolimod, and dimethyl fumarate) in RRMS patients37, and Mancardi et al., compared SCT to mitoxantrone in relapsing and progressive MS patients38.

Supplementary Table S1 summarizes the characteristics of the included trials, Table 1 shows the demographic and baseline characteristics of these studies population, and Supplementary Table S3 shows efficacy endpoints reported at 6months.

We assessed seven domains in each study according to The Cochrane Collaborations tool for assessing risk of bias 1. The 9 studies were randomized but 4 studies32,35,38,39 didnt clarify the methods of random sequence generation. 6 RCTs confirmed concealment of patients allocation to the intervention31,32,33,34,36,37. Blinding of the outcome assessors was clearly stated in all studies except Nabavi et al.39 but blinding of participants and personnel wasnt fulfilled in three studies35,37,38. The reasons for incomplete outcome data are related to the treatment in Uccelli et al.31 and the reasons werent clearly described in Burt et al37. Two studies reported the outcomes in an incomplete way that limited their inclusion in the meta-analysis inducing a reporting bias33,38. The overall quality of the studies was good for 2 studies32,36, fair for 3 studies31,34,37, and poor for 4 studies33,35,38,39. Figure2 shows the risk of bias summary and graph.

Risk of bias assessment: (a) Risk of bias summary, (b) Risk of bias graph.

After analyzing the efficacy and safety outcomes for all studies collectively, we subdivided the results into studies that used immunosuppression before AHSCT37,38 and studies that transplanted mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) without immunosuppression31,32,33,34,35,36,39 to minimize the procedural variations among the included trials.

The majority of the studies31,32,33,34,35,36,37,39 reported EDSS change for 211 patients in stem cell transplantation (SCT) arm and 176 controls. Because the time of reporting this outcome varied among the studies, we analyzed EDSS change at the last follow-up reported by each study. Our analysis showed nonsignificant difference between SCT group and the control group (MD=0.48, 95% CI [1.11, 0.14], p=0.13). There was great heterogeneity between studies (2=116.74, df=7, p<0.00001, I2=94%), so we pooled the data under the random-effects model (Table 2 and Supplementary Figure S1).

The subgroup analysis of the studies that used MSCs without immunosuppression also showed nonsignificant improvement (MD=0.3, 95% CI [0.87, 0.27], p=0.3). However, Burt et al37. that used immunosuppression before AHSCT revealed significant EDSS reduction (Supplementary Figure S1).

The results remained nonsignificant after the leave-one-out sensitivity analysis (Supplementary Figure L1).

The heterogeneity within the studies was not significant (2=1.61, df=1, p=0.2, I2=38%), and we adopted a random effect model. The reduction of EDSS in SCT group was significantly greater than the control group (MD=0.57, 95% CI [1.08, 0.06], p=0.03) (Table 2 and Fig.3a).

Forest plot of EDSS change from baseline at (a) 2months, (b) 6months, (c) 12months.

Adopting the random-effects model, the heterogeneity between the studies was significant (2=65.27, df=6, p<0.00001, I2=91%), and SCT showed nonsignificant improvement of EDSS compared to the control (MD=0.48, 95% CI [0.98, 0.03], p=0.07) (Table 2 and Fig.3b). MSCs without immunosuppression also resulted in nonsignificant EDSS reduction at 6months (MD=0.33, 95% CI [0.78, 0.11], p=0.14) (Fig.3b).

The effect estimate changed to (MD=0.62,95% CI [1.14, 0.09], p=0.02) favoring SCT over the control after excluding Nabavi et al.39 from the analysis (Supplementary Figure L2 and Table L1).

We adopted the random-effects model because heterogeneity was significant, and the difference between the SCT group and the control was not significant at 12months for both collective studies analysis and studies used MSCs without immunosuppression (p=0.06 and p=0.5, respectively). However, the study that used AHSCT plus immunosuppression37 showed significant improvement in patients disability (p<0.00001) (Table 2 and Fig.3c).

After performing a sensitivity analysis by excluding Fernandez et al.36, the results changed from nonsignificant to significant improvement in SCT arm (MD=1.69, 95% CI [1.94, 1.44], p<0.00001) (Supplementary Figure L3 and Table L1).

We compared the effect of SCT on patients disability depending on baseline EDSS. Six studies31,32,33,34,37,39 included 334 MS patients with baseline EDSS6.5, while two studies35,36 included 53 patients with baseline EDSS>6.5. Using a random effects model, both subgroups showed significant heterogeneity (p<0.00001 and p<0.00001). Both subgroups revealed nonsignificant effect of SCT on EDSS, (MD=0.41, 95% CI [1.11, 0.29], p=0.25) for baseline EDSS6.5 subgroup and (MD=0.68, 95%CI [2.68, 1.32], p=0.5) for baseline EDSS>6.5 subgroup (Table 2 and Supplementary Figure S2).

We pooled data of EDSS change from baseline to the last assessment time under a random-effects model, and the differences were nonsignificant for both low and high doses subgroups, (MD=0.31, 95% CI [1, 0.38], p=0.37) and (MD=0.57, 95% CI [1.94, 0.8], p=0.41), respectively. The studies of both subgroups showed significant heterogeneity (I2=95%, p<0.00001) for the low doses subgroup, and (I2=89%, p=0.0001) for the high doses subgroup (Table 2 and Supplementary Figure S3).

Adopting a random-effects model, stem cells from embryonic as well as adult origin showed nonsignificant effect on EDSS (p=0.17, and p=0.37, respectively), With significant heterogeneity among the studies (I2=88%, p=0.004), and (I2=94%, p<0.00001), respectively (Table 2 and Supplementary Figure S4).

We pooled data using a random-effects model. Five studies31,32,33,36,39, in which placebo was the control, showed substantialheterogeneity (I2=63%, p=0.03) and the difference between SCT and placebo was not significant (MD=0.09, 95% CI [0.46, 0.28], p=0.62). Three studies34,35,37, in which the control was active treatment, showed significant reduction of EDSS with SCT compared to the active drugs (MD=1.21, 95% CI [1.98, 0.43], p=0.002) and the heterogeneity was significant (I2=88%, p=0.0002) (Table 2 and Supplementary Figure S5).

Only two studies32,34 reported the number of relapses in the 6months following the intervention. Under a random-effects model, the heterogeneity was moderate (p=0.14, I2=53%), and the decrease in relapses number was nonsignificant (p=0.23) (Supplementary Figure S6).

Four studies31,32,34,37 assessed T25-FW in 154 and 136 patients in the SCT and control groups, respectively. We pooled data under a random-effect model, and heterogeneity was moderate (2=5.99, df=3, p=0.11, I2=50%). SCT resulted in a nonsignificant improvement in patients T25-FW scores compared to the control group (MD=0.69, 95% CI [1.93, 0.56], p=0.28), as shown in Fig.4.

Forest plot of T25-FW change from baseline.

In the studies that included mesenchymal SCT without immunosuppression, the improvement in patients T25-FW scores after SCT was not significant (MD=0.39, 95% CI [0.84, 0.06], p=0.09), but T25-FW significantly improved in the study that used AHSCT and immunosuppression37 (p=0.006). Figure4 demonstrates these analyses. The p value of the results didnt change after the one-study-removed sensitivity analysis (Supplementary Figure L4).

9-HPT was evaluated in four RCTs31,32,34,37. We used a random-effects model because heterogeneity was significant (p=0.0003, I2=84%). 9-HPT showed nonsignificant improvement in the collective analysis and the sub-analysis of MSCs without immunosuppression. However, Burt et al.37. revealed a significant improvement (p<0.00001) (Supplementary Figure S7). The results remained nonsignificant after sensitivity analysis (Supplementary Figure L5).

We pooled PASAT-3 scores assessed at the end of treatment in four trials under a random-effects model31,34,36,37. Heterogeneity was minimal (p=0.35, I2=9%), and the differences were nonsignificant in the collective analysis and the sub-analysis of autologous and mesenchymal SCT (p=0.35, p=0.96, and p=0.31, respectively) (Supplementary Figure S8). Effect estimate remained nonsignificant after one-study-removed sensitivity analysis (Supplementary Figure L6).

We analyzed the change in brain lesion volume from baseline to the end of the follow-up. Data were pooled under a random-effects model, heterogeneity was absent (p=0.38, I2=0%). Our analysis revealed a significant reduction in T2 lesions volume (MD=7.05, 95% CI [10.69, 3.4], p=0.0002). In the studies that used MSCs without immunosuppression, the reduction of brain lesions volume was nonsignificant (p=0.1) (Fig.5a).

Forest plot of radiological outcomes change from baseline (a) MRI T2-weighted lesions volume at the end of treatment, (b) MRI T2-weighted lesions number at 12months, (c) number of GELs at the end of treatment. *the study used immunosuppression before AHSCT.

The results became nonsignificant and changed to (MD=4.41, 95% CI [9.66, 0.85], p=0.1) after a sensitivity analysis performed by excluding Burt et al.37 (Supplementary Figure L7 and Table L1).

Adopting a random-effects model, the studies showed substantial heterogeneity (p=0.07, I2=70%). And the differences between SCT and the control after 12months were nonsignificant (p=0.99) (Fig.5b).

Five studies31,32,33,34,36 assessed this outcome. Four studies reported the change of GELs number from baseline at 6months except Fernandez et al.36 at 12months. We pooled data under a random-effects model and heterogeneity was not significant (2=7.81, df=4, p=0.1, I2=49%). Our analysis revealed nonsignificant differences in GELs number change (p=0.83) (Fig.5c). The results didnt change after sensitivity analysis (Supplementary Figure L8).

Seven studies31,32,33,34,36,37,38 reported adverse events that occurred during the follow-up period. Two studies35,39 didnt provide data about AEs. Nabavi et al. mentioned only pain at the site of bone marrow aspiration39. Our analysis revealed that the difference was nonsignificant between SCT and the control group regarding the incidence of most AEs. Administration-related AEs, including infusion site swelling, hematoma, and pain, were significantly more common in the SCT group compared to the control (N=25, RR=2.55, 95% CI [1.08, 6.03], p=0.034). On the other hand, the SCT group had a lower incidence of total infections (any infection during the follow-up period, including viral infections, respiratory, urinary infections, scabies, and other infestations) than the control group (N=60, RR=0.58, 95% CI [0.37, 0.9], p=0.02). Regarding the use of immunosuppression, AHSCT combined with immunosuppression was significantly associated with a higher incidence of blood and lymphatic system disorders (N=16, RR=2.33, 95% CI [1.23, 4.39], p=0.009). The analyses of the adverse events are shown in Table 3 and Supplementary Figures S9S14. No transplant-related mortality was noted in all trials during the follow-up period, except for two unrelated deaths compacted by Fernandez et al. in the placebo arm (one due to choking while feeding and the other due to respiratory infection)36.

We examined the publication bias among the studies that reported the effect of SCT on patients disability using the funnel plot test. Although there was funnel plot asymmetry, the test isnt reliable because the included studies were less than ten studies24 (Supplementary Figure S15).

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Efficacy and safety of stem cell transplantation for multiple sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis of ... - Nature.com

In a recent study published in The New England Journal of Medicine, researchers developed an innovative all-in-one treatment protocol that combines CD7 chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy with subsequent haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. This approach significantly advances the treatment of CD7+ hematological malignancies by eliminating the need for myeloablative chemotherapy and immunosuppressants for graft-versus-host disease prophylaxis.

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy utilizes synthetic antigen receptors targeting T lymphocytes to attack tumor cells specifically. To date, CAR T-cell therapies have shown unprecedented efficacy in B-cell malignancies. In contrast, there are significantly fewer clinical trials of CAR T-cell therapy against T-cell malignancies.1 Outcomes of T-cell lymphomas and relapsed T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) patients are notably poor compared to those of their B-cell counterparts, with an estimated 5-year overall survival rate of only 32% for T-cell lymphomas patients and 7% for relapsed T-ALL patients.2 The challenge in treating T-cell malignancies lies in the lack of ideal target antigens. Several studies, including a recent study published in Cell Research,3 identified CD7 as a promising target for CAR-T therapy in the treatment of T-cell malignancies. However, in these clinical trials of CD7 CAR T-cells, researchers frequently observed that CD7 CAR T-cell treatment resulted in incomplete hematologic recovery and pancytopenia, presenting a significant clinical challenge.4

Recently, The New England Journal of Medicine reported on a novel all-in-one treatment regimen developed by a team from Hangzhou, China (hereafter referred to as the Hangzhou Protocol).5 In this clinical trial of CD7 CAR T-cell therapy for CD7+ hematological malignancies, including T-cell malignancies and acute myeloid leukemia (AML), Hu et al. observed that CD7 CAR T-cell treatment induced severe bone marrow hypocellularity, pancytopenia, and immunosuppression, aligning with previous reports. The first patient experienced persistent grade 4 pancytopenia for three months following CAR T-cell infusion and consequently developed severe infections. A salvage haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) was thus performed, without additional pharmacologic pre-HSCT conditioning regimens. Favorable engraftment of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and immune reconstitution were observed, suggesting that the potent immunosuppressive functions of CD7 CAR T-cells, coupled with prior lymphodepletion, might replace the need for traditional chemotherapy conditioning. The subsequent 9 patients of similar conditions were promptly subjected to HSCT within one month after receiving CD7 CAR T-cell therapy without chemotherapy conditioning and immunosuppressive drugs for graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis. All 10 patients treated with the Hangzhou Protocol achieved complete remission. Pancytopenia was successfully relieved after allogeneic HSCT. Eight patients had full donor chimerism and immune reconstitution with a mild and manageable incidence of acute GVHD. Six of these patients remained in minimal residual disease-negative complete remission. The one-year overall survival rate increased to 68%. Collectively, this all-in-one Hangzhou Protocol offers a promising therapeutic option to CD7+ tumor patients.

Traditional CAR T-cell therapy followed by bridging HSCT involves longer intervals, chemotherapy conditioning, and the use of immunosuppressants for GVHD prophylaxis. Notably, the Hangzhou Protocol offers quadruple clinical benefits (Fig.1). First, CD7 CAR T-cell therapy efficiently eliminates CD7+ cancer cells in patients. More than 95% of patients with T-cell malignancies have CD7+ tumor cells,6 and about 30% of AML patients exhibit CD7 expression.7 In the trial, all treated patients including those with both T-cell malignancies and AML achieved complete remission. Second, the Protocol eliminates the need for pharmacologic myeloablation before HSCT, thereby avoiding its associated toxic effects. This is particularly beneficial for patients who have severe physiological issues or are in poor condition and who often are ineligible for allogeneic HSCT. Third, the Hangzhou Protocol does not require the use of immunosuppressants for GVHD prophylaxis, thus avoiding subsequent immunodeficiency issues. This allows the patients immune system to recover more rapidly. However, the mechanism behind this benefit requires further investigation. It is reported that CD7 plays a costimulatory role in T-cell signaling.8 Therefore, CD7 T cells, which are generated post CD7 CAR T-cell treatment, display reduced functionality and consequently a lower degree of GVHD. Lastly, the all-in-one treatment regimen maintains the persistence of CAR T-cells and supports their long-term immune surveillance function along with the graft-versus-leukemia effect. This maximizes the benefits of long-term immune surveillance by CAR T-cells and minimizes the risk of tumor relapse.

The figure illustrates clinical benefits of the Hangzhou Protocol in the context of CD7 CAR T-cell therapy for hematological malignancies. The top left section highlights the targeted tumor clearance capability of CD7 CAR T-cells, which are effective against both T-cell malignancies and AML. The top right section demonstrates the elimination of the need for myeloablative chemotherapy, reducing patient exposure to toxic effects. The bottom left section shows the avoidance of immunosuppressants in GVHD prophylaxis, which not only facilitates quicker immune system recovery but also minimizes complications from immunosuppression and associated drug side effects. Finally, the bottom right section details the sustained CAR T and GVL effects, which are crucial for preventing tumor relapse and supporting long-term immune surveillance. GVL graft-versus-leukemia, BM bone marrow, GVHD graft-versus-host disease, AML acute myeloid leukemia, CAR chimeric antigen receptor.

Several questions remain to be addressed regarding CD7 CAR T-cell therapy. One interesting question is why CD7 CAR T-cells suppress the patients hematopoiesis, causing severe pancytopenia, bone marrow aplasia, and immunosuppression. CAR T-cell-induced cytokine release syndrome could induce cytokine-associated pancytopenia.9 Conversely, it is also possible that minimal expression of CD7 on HSCs might induce CAR T-cell cytotoxicity. Furthermore, the mechanisms behind the successful engraftment and immune reconstitution of donor-derived stem cells in the presence of CD7 CAR T-cells while the patients own hematopoiesis is suppressed, are intriguing and warrant further investigation. Another interesting point is why CD7 CAR T-cell persistence is significantly longer than that of CD19 CAR T-cells. CAR tonic signaling has been reported to play a crucial role in regulating in vivo persistence and fitness of CAR T-cells.10,11 Thus, it is necessary to explore whether CD7 knockout in CD7 CAR T-cells affects CAR tonic signaling. All these questions need to be addressed in future studies to enhance our understanding and improve the efficacy of CD7 CAR T-cell therapy.

More here:
All-in-one Hangzhou Protocol: killing four birds with one stone | Cell Research - Nature.com

Abu Dhabi Stem Cells Center (ADSCC) has received the internationally recognised The Foundation for the Accreditation of Cellular Therapy (FACT) accreditation for its comprehensive cellular therapy programme.

Under the leadership of its Chief Executive Officer Prof. Yendry Ventura, ADSCC is the first healthcare institution in the UAE to be recognised by FACT, positioning the UAE as a leading destination for cutting-edge medical advancements in the region.

Out of the 261 centres worldwide accredited by FACT for cellular therapy, ADSCC stands as one of only two centres in the entire Middle East to meet FACTs rigorous standards. This accomplishment solidifies ADSCC's position as a leader in advanced cellular therapy. The centre achieved FACT accreditation for FACT-JACIE International Standards for Hematopoietic Cellular Therapy Product Processing, which implement best quality standards of medical and laboratory practice in hematopoietic progenitor cell transplantation and therapies from any hematopoietic tissue source (marrow, peripheral blood, umbilical cord and placental blood).

In 2020, ADSCC launched its Abu Dhabi Bone Marrow Transplant programme, the first comprehensive programme to provide autologous and allogeneic hematopoietic stem cells transplant (HSCT) for adult and paediatric patients in the UAE. The programme is led by a team of top-notch hematologists and clinicians, offering advanced holistic care for patients with hematological diseases, in addition to genetic and autoimmune disorders. Since the launch of ADSCC in 2018, the centre has achieved various milestones such as manufacturing the first CAR-T Cell Therapy in UAE. It has also received multiple prestigious accreditations including its recognition as a Centre of Excellence in Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation by the Department of Health - Abu Dhabi in 2023.

Prof. Yendry Ventura, CEO of ADSCC and Adjunct Professor at UAE University, said: Under the guidance of UAEs wise leadership and in line with the UAEs national agenda in healthcare, ADSCC has a clear vision and mandate of pioneering cellular therapy on a global scale and bringing medical breakthroughs closer to bedside, which plays a crucial role in positioning Abu Dhabi and the UAE at the vanguard of healthcare innovation. With this landmark FACT accreditation, we are breaking new ground in addressing complex diseases through cutting-edge treatments such as stem cell transplants and other cellular therapies. The journey towards the accreditation has been both extensive and stimulating, and we take immense pride in being the first institution in UAE to receive it. This achievement reaffirms our commitment to continue investing in providing the highest standards of patient care and offering top-tier cellular therapy services that is on par with the best globally.

Dr Phyllis Warkentin, FACT Chief Medical Officer, said: FACT accreditation represents a commitment to quality throughout an organisation and requires dedication and perseverance. I congratulate Prof. Ventura and the team of the Abu Dhabi Stem Cells Centre on achieving FACT accreditation, the first cellular therapy product processing laboratory in the UAE to reach this milestone.

The FACT accreditation programme conducts rigorous and comprehensive inspections awarding accreditation objectively based on evidence and in accordance with international standards and best practices in cellular therapies and is considered the leading accreditation body for cellular therapy programs worldwide.

Excerpt from:
Abu Dhabi Stem Cells Center first healthcare institution in UAE to receive FACT accreditation for cellular therapy ... - Abu Dhabi Media Office

Dublin, May 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "North America Hormone Replacement Therapy Market Report by Product, Route of Administration, Type of Disease, and Country 2024-2032" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The North America hormone replacement therapy market size reached US$ 4.5 Billion in 2023. Looking forward, the market to reach US$ 6.9 Billion by 2032, exhibiting a growth rate (CAGR) of 4.9% during 2023-2032

This treatment is particularly favorable for patients who are experiencing growth hormone deficiency, women nearing menopause and older people suffering from hypogonadism. HRT is available in several forms such as gels, injections, implants, and skin and mouth patches (transdermal). However, it may not be suitable for patients that have a record of blood clots, liver disease and untreated high blood pressure.

North America hormone replacement therapy market is currently being driven by several factors. A surge in the incidences of hormone imbalance disorders, especially in the geriatric and neonatal populations, is spurring the demand for HRT in North America. In line with this, the rising need for new treatment options with better safety results is further catalyzing the market growth in the region.

Apart from this, increasing R&D activities for hormone replacement products is enhancing their quality and efficiency. Additionally, the increasing consumer awareness, coupled with the rising technological innovations, such as new gel-based formulations, have also spurred the demand for hormone replacement products in the region.

Key Questions Answered in This Report:

Key Attributes:

Report Insights

Key Market Segmentation:

Key Regions Analysed

Market by Product

Market by Route of Administration

Market by Type of Disease

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North America Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) Market Research 2024: A $6.9 Billion Industry by 2032, Driven ... - GlobeNewswire

One in 36 children are diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. But of those, very few actually know what specific gene mutation may be behind their diagnosis. National Health Reporter Erin Billups takes a look at how early genetic testing can improve treatment options and quality of life for patients.

He's happy. He's outgoing. He's more outgoing with adults than he is with children. He loves water play. Loves to swim, said Genie Egerton-Warbuton, who cant help but smile herself when she speaks about her 11-year-old son Rowland.

Like many expecting parents, during her pregnancy with Rowland, Egerton-Warbuton underwent prenatal testing.

I had to have a cesarean section. I'll never forget the doctor saying, you've given birth to a perfect, beautiful baby. Healthy, you know, healthy little boy that we know doesn't have any sort of issues or genetic abnormalities, etc. from this test, said Egerton-Warbuton.

But from his notched eyelids at birth to missed developmental milestones, Egerton-Warbuton, a former preschool teacher, knew something wasnt right.

It's not normal for a child not to walk until they're two. And even his gait wasn't appropriate. And he was able to say some words, but then he was losing the words. He was able to pick up food and kind of feed himself. But then the next day, he needed to be spoon fed. It was just kind of, things did not feel right, said Egerton-Warbuton.

When Rowland was four, he underwent another round of genetic testing and was finally diagnosed with a form of autism called ADNP syndrome a deficiency of the activity-dependent neuroprotective protein a mutation that wasnt included in the test when Rowland was in utero.

Certain characteristics are common in ADNP syndrome. (Spectrum News)

We know that protein is supposed to play a really important role in brain development, said Dr. Alex Kolevzon, director of the Seaver Autism Center at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, of the ADNP deficiency. The hallmarks of ADNP syndrome, like autism, are social communication problems.

Kolevzon said ADNP is now included on the genetic screening test for autism, along with more than 200 other known gene mutations that cause varying degrees of autism. ADNP accounts for about 0.2% of autism cases, but there may be even more who have it. Kolevzon says it is time for more families to get their kids tested.

Oftentimes, families don't fully appreciate the value of genetic testing. You know, they have a child, the child that has autism. And it's not clear how knowing what the genetic causes will actually impact the child's life, said Kolevzon.

The sooner families and doctors know, the better, said Kolevzon. While not every case of autism will have a genetic abnormality, its estimated that about 10 to 30 percent will find a known cause through testing.

For us, there's a kind of a shift towards more personalized medicine. And so, you know, if you know exactly what's wrong with the biology, it gives you an opportunity to develop more targeted treatments, said Kolevzon.

Rowland was enrolled in a study led by Kolevzon, with nine other kids with ADNP Syndrome.

Each child was given a very low dose of ketamine. Kolevzon said the drug may promote synaptic plasticity or nerve cell growth. Thats what they eventually found, participants saw improvement in sensory sensibilities, hyperactivity and repetitive behaviors. Larger studies are needed to confirm the findings.

After the infusion, the next day he said, Mommy, which was, you know, amazing, said Egerton-Warbuton. And we noticed that he was able to navigate a city street without walking into people.

Rowland Egerton-Warburton has been working on his communication. (Courtesy Genie Egerton-Warbuton)

Rowland continues to work on further developing his speech. He is also learning to use a device that will help him communicate.

Egerton-Warbuton said her hope is that as more people with autism and other brain-based disorders are tested, more resources will go toward finding transformative genetic therapies for ADNP and other disorders.

So many of these hospitals do want to collaborate and do want to help these children. But it's very hard when you have a small amount of children and adults, said Egerton-Warbuton. You just feel kind of stuck.

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Early genetic testing could help children with autism - Spectrum News NY1

According to latest study, the U.S. precision medicine market size was estimated at USD 24.95 billion in 2023 and is projected to hit around USD 76.12 billion by 2033, growing at a CAGR of 11.80% during the forecast period from 2024 to 2033.

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Advancements in precision medicine have catalyzed significant growth in the U.S. market, leading to groundbreaking discoveries and FDA-approved treatments tailored to individual characteristics such as genetic makeup or tumor profiles. Routine molecular testing in cancer care empowers physicians to select treatments that enhance survival rates and minimize adverse effects for patients. However, the effectiveness of precision care hinges on the quality of diagnostic tests guiding treatment decisions.

The U.S. precision medicine market is experiencing rapid growth fueled by innovative approaches to disease prevention and treatment, such as personalized medicine. This approach considers individual differences in genes, environments, and lifestyles, with the goal of delivering targeted treatments to patients at the right time. The FDA plays a crucial role in ensuring the accuracy of Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) tests, which generate vast amounts of information posing novel regulatory challenges. To address this, the FDA has collaborated with industry stakeholders, laboratories, academia, and patient/professional societies to develop a flexible regulatory framework. This approach leverages consensus standards and state-of-the-art computing technology to support NGS test development, fostering innovation and accelerating access to reliable genetic tests. The Precision Medicine Initiative, led by the NIH, aims to understand how genetics, environment, and lifestyle impact disease prevention and treatment. Short-term goals focus on expanding precision medicine in cancer research, while long-term objectives aim to integrate precision medicine into all areas of healthcare. The All of Research Program, involving at least 1 million volunteers, underscores the initiative's commitment to large-scale precision medicine implementation nationwide.

U.S. Precision Medicine Market Key Takeaways

The Global Precision Medicine Market Size and share 2024 to 2033.

The global precision medicine market size is calculated at USD 91.72 billion for 2024 and is expected to reach around USD 246.30 billion by 2033, growing at a CAGR of 11.6% from 2024 to 2033, The North America market has captured 49.19% of the total revenue share in 2023.

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U.S. Precision Medicine Market Dynamics

Driver

Empowering Healthcare

Precision medicine, synonymous with personalized care, empowers healthcare providers to tailor specific treatments based on individual genetic, protein, and biological profiles. Particularly in cancer care, precision medicine focuses on how genetic or protein alterations in cancer cells influence treatment options. Beyond oncology, precision medicine offers versatile applications, leveraging lab test insights to craft personalized care plans with specific recommendations. This approach not only enhances diagnostic accuracy and treatment efficacy but also facilitates informed decisions regarding lifestyle modifications and preventive measures to mitigate cancer risks. As precision medicine continues to gain traction, its role in optimizing patient care drives growth in the U.S. precision medicine market, offering promising outcomes for patients and fostering innovation in healthcare delivery.

Restraint

Cost Challenges

The substantial costs associated with precision therapy, often reaching thousands or tens of thousands of dollars per month, exacerbate the financial burden of cancer diagnosis. Research indicates that a significant proportion of patients exhaust their assets within two years of diagnosis. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services' decision to cover genetic testing for advanced cancer patients is expected to incur an additional annual cost of $2.5 billion for the agency. These financial constraints pose challenges to the growth of the U.S. precision medicine market, hindering accessibility and affordability of innovative treatments for patients.

Opportunity

Advanced technologies for precision medicine

The surge in precision medicine technologies presents a compelling opportunity to enhance targeted care, potentially improving patient outcomes. However, this transformation also introduces complexities for health systems. As these technologies gain traction in routine clinical practice, they have the potential to revolutionize various aspects of care delivery, including care pathways, healthcare infrastructure, and patient experiences. The adoption of precision medicine is likely to raise equity considerations, ensuring equitable access to innovative treatments. Embracing these advancements presents an opportunity for growth in the U.S. precision medicine market, driving innovation and reshaping the healthcare landscape for the better.

Recent trends in U.S. precision medicine market:

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Report Highlights

By Technology

The U.S. precision medicine market is segmented into bioinformatics, big data analytics, drug discovery, gene sequencing, companion diagnostics, and other categories. The drug discovery segment stands out as the dominant force in this market. Precision medicine holds immense promise in enhancing the success rates of Phase II and III clinical trials by tailoring treatment options to patient subgroups based on molecular profiles, lifestyle, and environmental factors. Since its inception, precision medicine has witnessed a rapid expansion across various medical and healthcare applications, with oncology leading the charge in its implementation. This paradigm shift is revolutionizing the drug development process by pinpointing targets responsible for diseases in individual patients and stratifying clinical trials based on underlying mechanistic causes. As precision medicine continues to evolve, it is poised to drive innovation and advancements in the U.S. healthcare landscape, paving the way for more effective and personalized treatment approaches.

Precision medicine revolutionizes clinical trials by stratifying patients based on their genetic and molecular profiles, enabling more targeted and effective treatment approaches. This approach integrates clinical and molecular patient data to decipher the biological underpinnings of diseases, ultimately aiming for optimal patient outcomes. Clinical trials serve as the cornerstone for scientifically evaluating investigational agents, devices, and biologics, ranging from chemotherapy agents to gene therapies, in human volunteers to assess safety and efficacy. By leveraging precision medicine in clinical trial design, researchers can enhance trial efficacy and accelerate the development of innovative therapies tailored to individual patient needs, driving advancements in healthcare and pharmaceutical industries.

By Application Insights

The U.S. precision medicine market is segmented into CNS, immunology, oncology, respiratory, and other categories, with oncology emerging as the dominant sector. Precision medicine, as defined by the US National Cancer Institute, utilizes genetic, protein, and environmental information to prevent, diagnose, and treat diseases. While definitions may vary among stakeholders, targeted drug therapy, precision radiotherapy, and surgery are increasingly prevalent in clinical practice for both solid and hematological cancers. Precision medicine plays a pivotal role in modern cancer care, with comprehensive molecular profiling of tumors essential for identifying targetable abnormalities or biomarkers. Lung cancer exemplifies the significance of precision medicine, with genomic alterations soon expected to guide therapy in the majority of cases. As precision medicine continues to advance, its application in oncology promises to revolutionize cancer treatment, improving patient outcomes and driving growth in the U.S. precision medicine market.

By End-Use

In the U.S. precision medicine market, segmentation by end-users includes diagnostic companies, pharmaceutical companies, healthcare IT companies, and others, with pharmaceutical companies emerging as the dominant segment. Precision medicine is poised to revolutionize the entire pharmaceutical value chain, influencing early development stages through to go-to-market strategies. The next five years represent a critical window for pharmaceutical companies to capitalize on this transformative potential, necessitating proactive engagement and risk-taking across the healthcare ecosystem. Beyond enhancing disease detection, diagnosis, and treatment, precision medicine holds the promise of preventive healthcare by leveraging analytics to identify patient risks before they manifest. This proactive approach not only improves patient outcomes but also has the potential to lower costs for healthcare systems, underscoring the imperative for pharmaceutical companies to embrace precision medicine and drive innovation in the U.S. market.

By Sequencing Technology

In the U.S. precision medicine market, segmentation by sequencing technologies includes pyrosequencing, sequencing by synthesis, sequencing by ligation, single-molecule real-time sequencing (SMRT), ion semiconductor sequencing, chain termination sequencing, and nanopore sequencing, with the SMRT segment poised to dominate over the forecast period. While short-read massive parallel sequencing has become a standard diagnostic tool in medicine, it faces inherent limitations such as GC bias and difficulties in mapping to repetitive elements and discriminating analogous sequences. Single molecule real-time sequencers address these challenges by offering long-read capabilities, resulting in higher consensus accuracies and improved detection of epigenetic modifications from native DNA. As precision medicine continues to evolve, the adoption of SMRT sequencing technologies promises to enhance the accuracy and reliability of genetic analyses, driving advancements in personalized healthcare and shaping the future of genomic medicine in the U.S. market.

By Product

In the U.S. precision medicine market, segmentation into consumables, instruments, and services reveals consumables as the leading segment. Precision medicine strategies revolutionize healthcare by delving deeply into patients' genetic and genomic data, enabling accurate disease prediction and effective prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. This approach empowers physicians to select sensitive drugs, optimal dosages, and timing for medication usage, while minimizing adverse side effects. Consumables play a pivotal role in facilitating precision medicine implementation, providing the essential tools and materials required for genetic testing, sequencing, and analysis. As precision medicine continues to gain momentum, the consumables segment is poised to drive significant growth, enabling healthcare providers to deliver personalized and targeted therapies to patients, ultimately improving patient outcomes and revolutionizing the healthcare landscape.

By Route of Administration

In the U.S. precision medicine market, segmentation by route of administration reveals oral medication as the leading segment. Oral administration offers convenience, cost-effectiveness, and widespread acceptance among patients, making it the most commonly used medication administration route. Typically, the small intestine serves as the primary site of drug absorption, with medication bioavailability influenced by the rate and extent of absorption across the intestinal epithelium. This route of administration is particularly suitable for patients capable of ingesting and tolerating oral medication. Additionally, some medications with short half-lives are formulated as timed-release or sustained-release forms, allowing for gradual absorption over several hours. As precision medicine continues to advance, oral medication remains a cornerstone in delivering targeted therapies to patients, driving growth and innovation in the U.S. market.

By Drugs Insights

In the U.S. precision medicine market, segmentation by drug category includes Alectinib, Osimertinib, Mepolizumab, Aripiprazole Lauroxil, and others, with the Mepolizumab segment anticipated to experience significant growth. Mepolizumab, an anti-IL-5 monoclonal antibody developed for severe eosinophilic asthma treatment, exemplifies a clinical development program shaped by robust scientific principles. Initially, clinical data on mepolizumab's impact on lung function in a general asthmatic population were underwhelming. However, subsequent research revealed its effectiveness in reducing asthma exacerbations, particularly in patients with severe disease. Advancements in understanding asthma pathobiology further identified a target population and predictive biomarkers for mepolizumab. As precision medicine continues to evolve, mepolizumab's tailored approach to treating severe eosinophilic asthma positions it for substantial growth, offering promising outcomes for patients and driving innovation in the U.S. market.

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U.S. Precision Medicine Market Recent Developments

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U.S. Precision Medicine Market Top Key Companies:

U.S. Precision Medicine Market Report Segmentation

This report forecasts revenue growth at country levels and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2021 to 2033. For this study, Nova one advisor, Inc. has segmented the U.S. Precision Medicine market.

By Technology

By Application

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U.S. Precision Medicine Market Size to Hit USD 76.12 Billion by 2033 - BioSpace

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Former U.S. Rep. Mayra Flores wants mandatory DNA testing of all immigrants and favors a return of the much-denounced policy of separating children from their parents at the border.

The Donald Trump administration utilized both practices and likely would resume them if he is elected in November; Trump has said he plans to resurrect all of his previous immigration policies and impose new ones that would be more severe, including the largest domestic deportation operation in Americas history.

Flores, who is running to regain the congressional seat she lost in 2022, defends those policies, although family separation has roundly been denounced as inhumane. Some of the children were mere infants. Worse, many of those children have not been reunited with their parents half a decade later.

Until recently, our stated immigration policy was to keep families together. Federal law prohibits keeping immigrant children in detention for more than 20 days. The Trump administration bypassed that law by reclassifying separated children as unaccompanied minors in order to detain them indefinitely.

Obviously the law was violated in spirit and it doesnt seem to matter to Flores, who seeks to return to Congress to enact such laws. In fact, Republican lawmakers have filed legislation that would mandate genetic testing of immigrants. Our own Sen. Ted Cruz submitted the bill in that chamber.

I dont care if these children are with us for months, she said at a February gathering of the conservative youth group Turning Point USA in Brownsville.

Flores said longer child detentions might be necessary to allow time for the DNA testing, which she says is needed to verify that the children in fact are related to the people who brought them.

Genetic testing shouldnt be needed for such evaluations; it shouldnt be hard to see a difference in a childs comportment with a parent or guardian as opposed to a total stranger.

Its also obvious that any DNA testing that was done in the past didnt work. Thousands of families remain separated and might never be reunited; records of those tests and related detentions if kept at all were so shoddy that officials continue looking for detained childrens parents and cant find them.

Moreover, laboratories across the country that would perform such tests would have difficulty handling the burden not to mention the expense. Labs currently are so backlogged with forensic testing that criminal cases are being delayed while they wait for evidence.

Widespread testing during the Trump term was slowed down further because the demand for the tests outpaced the supply. Trump and his supporters constantly throw out the term family values in their campaigns. Shredding families, regardless of their nationality or legal status, obviously clashes.

Keeping migrant families together isnt just the right thing to do, it seems the most practical and efficient. Processing them together should speed up the process and ensure that they receive visas together if they qualify, or are deported together if they dont.

Republicans penchant for punitive measures increasingly is defying not only practicality, but morality.

Continued here:
Editorial: DNA testing of immigrants more trouble than it's worth, shouldn't even be necessary - MyRGV

There is a lot of beauty to aging as well as some complications, with Alzheimer's disease being a complicated condition that affects millions worldwide and older generations in particular. With about five million Americans grappling with Alzheimer's disease, its prevalence appears to be steadily climbing. It is projected to soar to eight figures in the future, potentially impacting over 13 million people by 2050. This taxing disease takes a toll on those who get it and their families, which has researchers and everyday people eager to find solutions. Without an existing cure for Alzheimer's disease, preventative measures have become the focus.

With questions arising surrounding the disease's genetic implications, people can turn to Alzheimer's genetic testing, although there is debate surrounding the pros and cons. Planning for the future, contributing to research efforts, mitigating personal risk factors, and finding solace in negative results are among the arguments in favor of testing. However, a cautious approach is also necessary, considering the multifaceted implications of genetic revelations and their potential to be inaccurate in determining if Alzheimer's is in one's future.

Genetics undeniably shapes Alzheimer's risk, yet the clarity genetic testing offers remains elusive for many. The apolipoprotein E gene, particularly the APOE e4 variant, is a significant genetic risk factor. Still, its presence doesn't guarantee Alzheimer's onset, complicating counseling for those tested. Moreover, while rare genetic mutations directly cause Alzheimer's, they're predominantly observed in familial early-onset cases, leaving more ambiguity for the broader population. Lifestyle factors also intertwine with genetic predispositions, which influence Alzheimer's susceptibility. Conditions like obesity, hypertension, and diabetes, coupled with specific gene mutations, elevate the risk across varied demographics.

While other medical conditions have made substantial strides in discovering cures, breakthroughs in Alzheimer's treatment have not been as evident. For over a decade, there's been an absence of new drugs that bring promising results, shedding light on the challenges researchers face in curing Alzheimer's once and for all. More positive developments include the recent progress in using brain and spinal fluid proteins to predict Alzheimer's progression. This advancement offers some promise for future intervention.

Despite these advancements, an added dose of anxiety often accompanies genetic testing, given its uncertainty. Alzheimer's disease is not a fast-acting condition, as the progressive form of dementia is known to manifest gradually. Even with impaired memory, cognition, and behavior, a definitive diagnosis is still only cemented during postmortem brain examinations, despite visible symptoms while the afflicted is alive. When symptoms of Alzheimer's disease start to become evident, varied tests aid in assessing cognitive functionand ruling out alternative diagnoses to guide treatment decisions.

Alzheimer's disease includes several stages, and navigating each stage of the disease demands comprehensive caregiving strategies that acknowledge the diverse challenges each phase presents. While a cure is not yet available, many resources exist to equip families and caretakers to offer tailored support and quality of life to those with Alzheimer's disease. The daunting possibility of Alzheimer's disease, from the mild cognitive impairment stage to the final stage of advanced dementia, can draw people to seek answers through genetic testing. Researchers continue to seek answers as lifestyle modifications and healthy living habits currently stand as effective ways to combat cognitive decline.

Disclaimer: The San Francisco Weekly newsroom and editorial were not involved in the creation of this content.

Link:
Genetic Testing for Alzheimer's: Navigating Risks and Prevention Strategies - SF Weekly

MELBOURNE, Australia, May 29, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Genetic Technologies Limited (ASX: GTG; NASDAQ: GENE, Company, GTG), a global leader in genomics-based tests in health, wellness and serious disease,

is pleased to announce the Company has released its novel Comprehensive Risk Assessment test that covers 100% of women at risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer. The innovative test, available to all women above the age of 30, assesses a womans risk of cancer due to hereditary, including those with common gene mutations, and sporadic disease.

Launched at the inaugural Know Your Risk event in California, USA, the event provided invaluable insights of the role of genomics in womens health. Co-hosted by Dr Kristi Funk, known for her surgical treatment of celebrity Angelina Jolie, alongside CEO & Founder of Humanise Health, Krystal Barter, the event also featured panellists such as US based OB-GYN Dr. Carolynn Young, Andrea Hans, Allyn Rose Oertel, and Matthew Zachary.

This new geneType Comprehensive Risk Assessment test represents a significant leap in preventative healthcare, whereby clinicians will have a complete understanding of their patients risk profile of developing one of the deadly cancers. The addition of the germline component to GTGs platform provided the ability to screen 100% of women at risk. Retrospective data shows 5% to 10% of breast and ovarian cancers are caused by gene mutations and the remainder are due to sporadic condition.

This represents a massive market opportunity for geneType, with 1 in 8 chances of a woman in the US developing breast cancer equating to about 310,000 diagnosed cases annually. Although less prevalent, ovarian cancer accounts for 19,600 cases diagnosed yearly in the US and claims 12,700 deaths annually. Ovarian cancer is more deadly and is among the leading cause of cancer deaths in women. Dr Kirsti Funk noted that Understanding your cancer risk based on critical diet and lifestyle and genetic factors allows me to create a more directed, effective risk-reducing strategy.

This advancement in personalised preventative healthcare, was welcomed by the companys strategic partners in employer groups, functional medicine clinics and existing physician networks. The OB-GYNs are overwhelmingly excited about this launch and expressed their satisfactions on the abilities of our new comprehensive test for early diagnosis and ultimately saving lives.

GTGs CEO, Simon Morriss, said We are incredibly proud to have been part of this Know Your Risk event which underscored the importance of genetic testing and risk assessment in transforming womens health, inspiring attendees to advocate for their health and well-being proactively. We are also very fortunate and to have the opportunity to launch this unique risk assessment test in the presence of such a wonderful group of people.

Peter Rubinstein, GTGs Chairman commented, We are also excited to announce that in preparation for significant demand for this revolutionary test we have fully onboarded a high throughput automated laboratory in the United States with capacity to scale up to run 100,000 tests per month should future demand require. Every woman deserves the right to know her risk.

For more information, please visit http://www.genetype.com.

Authorised for release by the Board of Directors.

Enquiries Simon Morriss Chief Executive Officer E: investors@genetype.com

About Genetic Technologies Limited

Genetic Technologies Limited (ASX: GTG; Nasdaq: GENE) is a diversified molecular diagnostics company. A global leader in genomics-based tests in health, wellness and serious disease through its geneType and EasyDNA brands. GTG offers cancer predictive testing and assessment tools to help physicians to improve health outcomes for people around the world. The company has a proprietary risk stratification platform that has been developed over the past decade and integrates clinical and genetic risk to deliver actionable outcomes to physicians and individuals. Leading the world in risk prediction in oncology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, Genetic Technologies continues to develop risk assessment products. For more information, please visit http://www.genetype.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This announcement may contain forward-looking statements about the Companys expectations, beliefs or intentions regarding, among other things, statements regarding the expected use of proceeds. In addition, from time to time, the Company or its representatives have made or may make forward-looking statements, orally or in writing. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as believe, expect, intend, plan, may, should or anticipate or their negatives or other variations of these words or other comparable words or by the fact that these statements do not relate strictly to historical or current matters. These forward-looking statements may be included in, but are not limited to, various filings made by the Company with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, press releases or oral statements made by or with the approval of one of the Companys authorized executive officers. Forward-looking statements relate to anticipated or expected events, activities, trends or results as of the date they are made. As forward-looking statements relate to matters that have not yet occurred, these statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause the Companys actual results to differ materially from any future results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Many factors could cause the Companys actual activities or results to differ materially from the activities and results anticipated in such forward-looking statements as detailed in the Companys filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and in its periodic filings with the ASX in Australia and the risks and risk factors included therein. In addition, the Company operates in an industry sector where securities values are highly volatile and may be influenced by economic and other factors beyond its control. The Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

_____________________________ https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/ovarian-cancer/about/key-statistics.html https://www.instagram.com/p/C7XX-sKygdG/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

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GTG Launches Revolutionary geneType Test covering 100% Risk of Breast and Ovarian Cancer - GlobeNewswire

image:

Photograph of a stick insect.

Credit: Filippo Castellucci.

Traits are often lost during evolution, either because they are no longer beneficial or because they are too costly to maintain. When this happens, it is generally believed that the genes underlying the trait will eventually degrade as well, making it difficult if not impossible for the trait to re-emerge. Yet, there are numerous examples in nature of once-lost traits reappearing in descendent lineages. According to Giobbe Forni, a Research Fellow at the University of Bologna, Mapping the presence and absence of traits onto a species tree suggests that some traits may have been lost in the lineages leading to extant species and then subsequently reinstated. Wings in stick insects are considered one of the more iconic instances of this evolutionary process. This implies that the genes underlying these traits may be preserved, in some cases for millions of years. Unfortunately, research on the molecular basis of such re-emergence is sparse, leaving the underlying mechanisms responsible for such preservation largely open to speculation until now. In anew study published in Genome Biology and Evolution, Forni and his colleagues shed light on another complex trait that has been lost in some stick insectsthe production of males. Loss of the ability to produce males results in populations of only females, which reproduce by parthenogenesis, a form of asexual reproduction. The study reveals that genes that are highly connected in regulatory networks and involved in multiple biological processes may be maintained long after a trait is lost, providing a potential avenue for trait re-emergence over long evolutionary time scales.

In the new study, Forni and his co-authors Barbara Mantovani, Alexander S. Mikheyev, and Andrea Luchetti performed a comparative analysis of three species of stick insects in the genusBacillus. WhileBacillus grandii marettimipopulations are composed of males and females that reproduce sexually,Bacillus atticuspopulations have lost the ability to produce males, comprising only females that reproduce by parthenogenesis. A third species,Bacillus rossius, includes both sexual populations and parthenogenetic populations that have lost the ability to produce males. By studying the fates of genes involved in male reproduction in these three species, the authors sought to investigate the extent to which genes are preserved after trait loss and the potential mechanisms driving this preservation.

The researchers first identified gene networks whose expression was correlated with either male or female reproduction in the sexual speciesB. marettimiand then evaluated the same genes inB. atticusandB. rossius. Surprisingly, male-related genes exhibited no signs of weakened selection or accelerated evolution compared with female-related genes in the parthenogenetic species. Furthermore, male-related patterns of gene expression were partially preserved across both parthenogenetic species.

Delving deeper, the researchers found that genes in female-related networks were primarily expressed in female reproductive tissues, while those in male-related networks were expressed in maleandfemale reproductive tissues, including both sexual and parthenogenetic females. This suggests that male-related genes may also play roles in female reproduction. The involvement of a gene in multiple biological processes is known as pleiotropy, and this phenomenon may explain the preservation of male-related genes in these parthenogenetic stick insects, as previously hypothesized.

Moreover, the authors found that genes that were highly connected to many other genes in the network were more likely to be expressed in the reproductive tissues of parthenogens, suggesting that a gene's network connectivity may also influence its gene preservation after trait loss. Taken together, these findings indicate that the molecular ground plan of the once-lost male reproductive process may persist due to pleiotropic effects on other traits, explains Forni. Different genes may undertake different trajectories of preservation and decay depending on the level of pleiotropy within the gene regulatory network.

This study not only sheds light on genetic architecture persistence after trait loss but also offers a potential glimpse into the emergence of rare males and cryptic sex (i.e. episodic generation of males and sexual reproduction), which have been observed in an increasing number of lineages that were thought to have lost the ability to produce males long ago. This opens up new potential avenues for research, with implications that may reach far beyond stick insects. Looking at how widespread genetic preservation after trait loss is on a larger scale remains fundamental. Although theBacillusspecies complex offers a nice framework to address these issues, it would be useful to analyze a larger species complex where multiple transitions between reproductive strategies has occurred, notes Forni. While it is often necessary to rely on model species to discover and dissect biological processes, it is even more important to test our hypotheses in a wider context. This will be possible only if we dedicate more effort to observing and analyzing the amazing diversity of organisms and their intricate adaptations.

Genome Biology and Evolution

Observational study

Animals

Parthenogenetic stick insects exhibit signatures of preservation in the molecular architecture of male reproduction

21-May-2024

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.

Excerpt from:
Maintenance of male-related genes after loss of males in stick insects - EurekAlert

Fortum, a Nordic energy company with headquarters in Espoo, Finland, near Helsinki, and offices in 10 other countries, announced that it will modernize the Loviisa nuclear power plants low-pressure turbines. The project will start in 2026 as part of lifetime extension-related investments at the site.

The Lovissa plant is a dual-unit facility with a total net capacity of about 1,014 MW (Figure 1). Unit 1 was commissioned in 1977 and Unit 2 in 1980. The plant is located about 100 kilometers east of Helsinki and provided about 10% of Finlands electricity production in 2023, with the units operating at capacity factors of 89.79% and 92.32%, respectively. The modernization of the turbines is expected to increase the total capacity of the plant by approximately 38 MW.

In February 2023, the Finnish government granted a new operating license for the power plant until 2050. As a result, Fortum expects to perform continuous improvements to ensure reliable electricity production for at least the next 26 years. Fortum said it has invested approximately 200 million in refurbishing the Loviisa power plant over the past five years, and it estimated that investments related to the lifetime extension will amount to about 1 billion by 2050.

Extending the lifetime of the power plant is a major investment with a positive impactboth economically and in terms of employment. Modernizing the low-pressure turbines is our first significant investment in preparation for the lifetime extension. Our aim is for the power plant to operate during the new operating license period just as stably, reliably, and safely as it has so far, Sasu Valkamo, senior vice president of the Loviisa power plant, said in a statement.

Doosan koda Power was selected as the supplier for the low-pressure turbine job. The modernization will be carried out in conjunction with normal annual outages. In the turbine project, eight low-pressure turbine housings and their internal parts will be renewed. This particular modernization is targeting only the turbines, so it wont impact the reactor plant or nuclear safety. The project is expected to significantly improve the efficiency of the turbine plants electricity production without increasing the thermal output of the reactor.

Doosan koda Power is a seasoned turbine supplier, and we have good experiences working with them. In our previous modernization project, Doosan koda Power also supplied us with high-pressure turbines, Valkamo said.

Radek Trnn, head of Sales Nuclear at Doosan koda Power, said, Fortum is our long-term customer and we are very proud to be part of this new important modernization project at the Loviisa nuclear power plant. Nuclear power is a strategic segment for us, and this contract is further confirmation that we are on the right track.

Doosan koda Power is a leading global manufacturer and supplier of power plant machinery, especially steam turbine-generator sets with outputs between 3 MW and 1,200 MW. The company is part of the Doosan Group, which supplies technologies and services to customers all over the world.

Fortum, meanwhile, has more than 150 power plants in its fleet. In addition to the Lovissa plant, Fortum also owns shares in Olkiluoto Units 1, 2, and 3, Oskarshamn Unit 3, and Forsmark Units 1, 2, and 3. Fortum also has hydro, combined heat and power (CHP), solar, and wind power plants. It touts a 98% CO2-free electricity generation portfolio. It is the third-largest power generator in the Nordic countries and one of the leading heat producers globally.

Aaron Larson is POWERs executive editor (@POWERmagazine).

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Upgrades Planned at Loviisa Nuclear Power Plant as Part of Life Extension - POWER magazine