PASCAGOULA, MS (WLOX) -

Nearly 120 doctors, nurses, technicians and other Singing River Health System employees lined up to register as a bone marrow donor in honor of their co-worker, Dr. Jeremy Simpler, who is battling cancer.

"I don't want to get emotional, but very, very devastating when we found this out because he is wonderful. He's a people person. He treated us like family," Singing River Health System Surgical Tech Patricia Taylor said.

A stranger, who gave 40 seconds to get his or her cheeks swabbed, could end up saving Simpler's life. Now, his co-workers want to repay that favor.

"Every day, we have someone looking for a match," Mattie Coburn, with the Mississippi Marrow Donor Program said.

Coburn said 70 percent of patients who need a transplant rely on the registry, because they do not have a match in their family.

There are two different ways donors are asked to donate.

"Bone marrow transplant, it is outpatient. You are put to sleep under anesthesia. We are going to go to the hip and pelvic bone with a sterile needle and syringe," Coburn said. "You are not going to feel it. We keep you overnight for observation, and release you with a Band-Aid over where the needles were. PBSC, peripheral blood stem cell, is similar to giving platelets. We draw blood, separate the cells, you get your blood back."

Three years ago, Singing River Health System Dr. Clinton Hull donated bone marrow.

"It was a really good feeling," Hull said. "The last communication I had through the bone marrow service was the patient had returned to their daily activities and living, so that makes me feel really good."

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Co-workers honor doctor by registering as bone marrow donors

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

La Jolla, CA (PRWEB) September 03, 2014

A new study, published on Aug. 8th, 2014 in Stem Cells Translational Medicine, has shown the positive effect stem cell therapy has had on a group of patients only 6 months after their treatment. Researchers observed significant improvements in disease-related complications in each of the 5 patients included in the study. Post-treatment brain scans of each patient revealed that stroke-related damage was reduced over time. Further, at six-month follow-ups patients demonstrated improvements in standard measures of stroke-related disability and impairment.

Researchers are being cautiously optimistic when considering these results. Similar improvements are often seen in stroke patients as part of the normal recovery process and state that more thorough studies will need to be completed. Nonetheless, the findings are absolutely astounding as the five patients included in this study suffered severe strokes. Four out of five of the patients had the most serious type of stroke. Normally only 4% of these patients survive and are able to live independently after six months of a stroke occurrence.

Clinical studies for stem cell treatment are currently being offered by StemGenex to patients diagnosed with Stroke and other degenerative neurological diseases. Innovation is truly a driving force for StemGenex. Stroke Patients who receive stem cell treatment through StemGenex receive multiple therapeutic modalities they simply cannot find elsewhere under one roof, said Jeremiah McDole, Director of Scientific Research and Development at StemGenex. Offering targeted therapies that deliver stem cells past the blood brain barrier is essential to providing effective treatment for patients with neurological disorders.

StemGenex takes a unique approach of compassion and empowerment while providing access to the latest stem cell therapies for degenerative neurological diseases including Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinsons Alzheimers disease, and others. Rita Alexander, founder of StemGenex and the companys first stem cell patient, insists that all patients be treated like they are one of our loved ones. Hope, compassion, and the relentless pursuit for an end to these diseases are the primary focus.

To find out more about stem cell therapy, contact StemGenex either by phone at (800) 609-7795 or email Contact@stemgenex.com

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Latest Study on Stem Cell Therapy Shows Promising Signs of Recovery for Stroke Patients and Support for StemGenex ...

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

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Brett King said he could hear his wife crying as he sat helplessly in a separate Spanish jail cell, arrested for taking their cancer-stricken son out of the United Kingdom for a treatment they say their doctor refused to offer.

The Kings were arrested for taking 5-year-old Ashya out of the country for proton beam therapy, which they said the Southampton University Hospital refused to discuss following the initial surgery to remove Ashyas tumor.

"When we were in prison, there wasn't a minute that went by without our hearts hurting to see Ashya," King told reporters today. "Being locked up, you can't do anything."

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He said Ashya wasn't allowed to have any visitors since their arrest in Spain on Saturday. British prosecutors dropped their arrest warrant on Tuesday, and the couple spoke to the media upon their release today.

"My heart is still up here," he said, grabbing his throat. He said he looked forward to reuniting with his son.

"We want to help my son get through this bad time because he hasn't got too many months to live," Brett King said.

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Parents Speak Out After Being Jailed for Taking Cancer-Stricken Son Out of Country

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

4-Sep-2014

Contact: Antti Honkela antti.honkela@hiit.fi University of Helsinki

RNA-sequencing allows measuring the gene expression of humans or other organisms. The method has recently become very popular in bioscience and medical research, and it is being adopted to clinical applications. Compared to previous methods, RNA-sequencing enables the study of alternative gene isoforms or transcripts, which are formed for example through the process of alternative splicing.

The analysis of the large amount of data produced by RNA-sequencing requires many advanced computational methods. Analysis of transcript level data is especially demanding and the differences between alternative methods can be large.

In the recent assessment the BitSeq method developed by the University of Helsinki and the University of Manchester researchers produced clearly the most reliable results in this task. In one subtask it could produce equally accurate results using only half the data needed by a very popular alternative method.

The BitSeq method is based on probabilistic modelling that allows comparing different possible origins for observed sequences that cannot be identified uniquely. This allows computing probability distributions over the expression levels of each transcript of every gene in a way that captures the uncertainty and possible sources of error in the measurements. Accounting for this uncertainty through probabilities is essential for the accuracy of the method, Antti Honkela describes.

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The assessment article:

SEQC/MAQC-III Consortium. (2014). A comprehensive assessment of RNA-seq accuracy, reproducibility and information content by the Sequencing Quality Control Consortium. Nature Biotechnology. doi:10.1038/nbt.2957 http://www.nature.com/nbt/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nbt.2957.html

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Most accurate measures of gene expression

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

3-Sep-2014

Contact: Kathryn Ryan kryan@liebertpub.com 914-740-2100 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

New Rochelle, NY, September 2, 2014A lifelong gluten-free diet (GFD) is the conventional approach to managing celiac disease, a chronic inflammatory disorder affecting the small intestine that can result in malnutrition. However, recent evidence shows that a GFD may not be sufficient to prevent serious complications related to celiac disease. A detailed discussion of the metabolic disorders and functional abnormalities that can develop, and nutritional treatments for these is presented in a Review article published in Journal of Medicinal Food, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Journal of Medicinal Food website until October 2, 2014.

Sara Farnetti and coauthors, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart (Rome, Italy), cover a broad scope of digestive and nutrient absorptive processes in individuals with celiac disease that may be compromised due to increased inflammation. In the article "Functional and Metabolic Disorders in Celiac Disease: New Implications for Nutritional Treatment", the authors discuss how diminished gallbladder and pancreatic function, and increased gut permeability may contribute to the development of overweight and obesity, and impaired glucose and lipid metabolism and insulin secretion in these patients.

"This article reviews the extensive literature on lifelong gluten-free diet supplementation to celiac disease patients and makes outstanding recommendations," says Journal of Medicinal Food Editor-in-Chief Sampath Parthasarathy, MBA, PhD, Florida Hospital Chair in Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Central Florida, Orlando. "The authors conclude that plant oils and products are able to stimulate the gall bladder to promote the absorption process and provide better nutrition to these patients. The conclusion that a lifelong gluten-free diet provision must be accompanied by proper nutrient supplementation is a sound one; however, caution must be exercised in using fried oil as a gall bladder stimulant."

About the Journal

Journal of Medicinal Food is an authoritative, peer-reviewed, multidisciplinary journal published monthly in print and online. Led by Editors-in-Chief Sampath Parthasarathy, MBA, PhD, and Young-Eun Lee, PhD, Wonkwang University, Jeonbuk, Korea, this scientific journal publishes original research on the bioactive substances of functional and medicinal foods, nutraceuticals, herbal substances, and other natural products. The Journal explores the chemistry and biochemistry of these substances, as well as the methods for their extraction and analysis, the use of biomarkers and other methods to assay their biological roles, and the development of bioactive substances for commercial use. Tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Journal of Medicinal Food website.

About the Publisher

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.

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Is a gluten-free diet enough to control the complications of celiac disease?

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

3-Sep-2014

Contact: Kathryn Ryan kryan@liebertpub.com 914-740-2100 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

New Rochelle, NY, September 3, 2014If continuing increases in health care costs are inevitable, as some economists predict, is it possible for health care delivery reform to succeed in reducing the overall burden of health care expenditures on the U.S. economy? According to the results of a new study, the focus should shift from cost control to improving utilization rates and quality outcomes, as described in detail in an article in Population Health Management, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Population Health Management website until October 3, 2014.

In the article "Evaluating Health Care Delivery Reform Initiatives in the Face of 'Cost Disease'," Steven Thompson, PhD, University of Richmond, VA, Rajiv Kohli, PhD, College of William and Mary (Williamsburg, VA), Craig Jones, MD and Nick Lovejoy, Vermont Blueprint for Health (Williston, VT), and Katharine McGraves-Lloyd and Karl Finison, Onpoint Health Data (Portland, ME), analyzed claims by patients in Vermont covered by Medicaid and commercial insurance for the 5-year period 2007-2011. The authors evaluated utilization rates and cost of care for inpatient services for individuals treated in patient-centered medical homes, which are part of a novel delivery system model in Vermont that focuses on enhancing preventive health services. Through disease prevention and improved disease management, a goal of this delivery model is reduced inpatient care, with a corresponding decrease in per patient cost of care.

"Research like this is very important in building the evidentiary basis for the Patient Centered Medical Home," says Editor-in-Chief David B. Nash, MD, MBA, Dean and Dr. Raymond C. and Doris N. Grandon Professor, Jefferson School of Population Health, Philadelphia, PA. "It is especially important when it comes to helping persons in the Medicaid program."

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About the Journal

Population Health Management is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published bimonthly in print and online that reflects the expanding scope of health care management and quality. The journal delivers a comprehensive, integrated approach to the field of population health and provides information designed to improve the systems and policies that affect health care quality, access, and outcomes. Comprised of peer-reviewed original research papers, clinical research, and case studies, the content encompasses a broad range of chronic diseases (such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic pain, diabetes, depression, and obesity) in addition to focusing on various aspects of prevention and wellness. Tables of Contents and a sample issue may be viewed on the Population Health Management website. Population Health Management is the official journal of the Population Health Alliance.

About the Publisher

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Are rising health care costs inevitable?

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

3-Sep-2014

Contact: Kathryn Ryan kryan@liebertpub.com 914-740-2100 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

New Rochelle, NY, September 3, 2014Robin Ali, PhD, University College London, Jean Bennett, MD, PhD, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and William Hauswirth, PhD, University of Florida College of Medicine, are co-recipients of the Pioneer Award, recognized for their leadership and contributions to the field of gene therapy to treat retinal degeneration leading to blindness. Human Gene Therapy, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers, is commemorating its 25th anniversary by bestowing this honor on the leading Pioneers in the field of cell and gene therapy selected by a blue ribbon panel* and publishing a Pioneer Perspective by the award recipients.

Dr. Ali, Professor of Human Molecular Genetics, led proof-of-concept studies demonstrating the feasibility of using gene therapy to repair photoreceptor defects in the eye and of using cell transplantation for retinal repair. He also had a pioneering role in the first clinical trial for inherited retinal degeneration.

Dr. Bennett, Professor of Ophthalmology, Cell and Developmental Biology, recalls her first experiences with molecular biology and gene transfer technology, acquired in the lab of Dr. W. French Anderson, known as "the father of gene therapy." She describes her developing career, including the decision to go to medical school and to focus her research on developing adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapy techniques for restoring vision to patients affected by retinal degeneration in her Pioneer Perspective article entitled "My Career Path for Developing Gene Therapy for Blinding Diseases: The Importance of Mentors, Collaborators, and Opportunities," available on the Human Gene Therapy website.

Dr. Hauswirth, Rybaczki-Bullard Professor of Ophthalmology, traces his involvement in the field of retinal gene therapy to his early interest in studying the interaction between light and biological molecules. He provides a historical perspective on the discovery of the gene mutations responsible for several of the most common inherited eye diseases and the advances in AAV gene therapy technology being developed and applied to deliver replacement genes. His Pioneer Perspective, entitled "Retinal Gene Therapy Using Adeno-Associated Viral Vectors: Multiple Applications for a Small Virus," is available on the Human Gene Therapy website.

"These groups brought forward the first convincing clinical results of in vivo gene therapy, which paved the way for the current renaissance we are seeing in the field," says James M. Wilson, MD, PhD, Editor-in-Chief of Human Gene Therapy, and Director of the Gene Therapy Program, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia.

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*The blue ribbon panel of leaders in cell and gene therapy, led by Chair Mary Collins, PhD, MRC Centre for Medical Molecular Virology, University College London selected the Pioneer Award recipients. The Award Selection Committee selected scientists that had devoted much of their careers to cell and gene therapy research and had made a seminal contribution to the field--defined as a basic science or clinical advance that greatly influenced progress in translational research.

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Pioneer Award recipients Robin Ali, Ph.D., Jean Bennett, M.D., Ph.D., and William Hauswirth, Ph.D.

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

3-Sep-2014

Contact: Ron Gilmore rlgilmore1@mdanderson.org 713-745-1898 University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center

Parents of twins often tell them apart through subtle differences such as facial expression, moles, voice tone and gait. Similarly, physicians treating women with endometrial cancer must be able to distinguish between different versions of this disease form that, on the surface, appear the same.

With endometrial cancer, the most common gynecological cancer in the western world and the fourth most prevalent in the U.S., it can literally be a matter of life and death. Mortality rates from this cancer have nearly tripled in the last 25 years and are thought to be attributed to the rising incidence of obesity.

Scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston have identified genetic mutations in endometrioid endometrial carcinoma (EEC), the most common form of this cancer of the uterine lining. The mutations revealed a more lethal version of an EEC subtype previously thought to respond well to treatment. It's possible that by identifying these patients early on, oncologists can try more aggressive treatment approaches to increase the likelihood for a positive outcome.

"EEC is categorized into subtypes that help determine risk of recurrence and guide treatment," said Wei Zhang, Ph.D., professor of pathology at MD Anderson. "Most patients have Type I, which can be diagnosed early and generally has a good outcome with treatment."

Type I accounts for 70 to 80 percent of all EECs. Type II is more troublesome and is usually diagnosed late in the cancer's progression resulting in a poor prognosis. Zhang's team, however, identified a cluster of patients within Type I that appears to have a more virulent form of it previously not recognized. Zhang labeled this patient group as Cluster II.

"The patients were mostly younger and obese that's typical for Type I. What's unusual is for patients in this disease category to have decreased survival rates," said Zhang. "Molecular subtyping of EEC may help oncologists with diagnosis and prognosis within this unique subset."

Zhang believes that by being able to identify molecular "attributes," physicians can identify EEC patients at risk for this more lethal form of the disease.

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Genetic 'hotspot' linked to endometrial cancer aggressiveness

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

IRVINE, CA and ANNAPOLIS JUNCTION, MD (PRWEB) September 04, 2014

Proove Biosciences, the commercial and research leader in personalized medicine, will be attending the 21st Annual Napa Pain Conference, September 5th-7th, at the Meritage Conference Center. Proove will specifically be presenting research conducted through their proprietary PILL II Study.

The PILL II study examined the prevalence of genetic variations in a population of chronic pain patients who were taking prescription opioids. Proove researchers found that there is in fact a greater prevalence of these genetic variations in the study group vs. the control population.

The Napa Pain Conference is a leading CME pain management conference that traditionally presents new data and best practices in pain therapies. The conference is designed to provide significant educational opportunity to everyone, regardless of position, or role in the pain management and pain treatment industry.

Proove Biosciences genetic testing has allowed pain management physicians to better assess their patients needs by analyzing how they will react to specific treatments, and help physicians decide if there are better alternatives to consider, stated Brian Meshkin, CEO of Proove Biosciences.

The nationally acclaimed annual conference is the premier event for the study of pain diagnosis and treatment. Regarding opioids and addiction, the conference aims to provide an understanding of current medical treatment; review current processes for patients at risk for aberrant behaviors related to prescription drug abuse; discuss strategies to enhance safety; and increase awareness of best practices to help reduce and prevent opioid over-prescribing.

As the commercial leader in personalized pain medicine research and genetic testing, Proove Biosciences is committed to helping patients manage and treat their pain in the most efficient and safest way possible, stated Meshkin. This is only possible by truly understanding how the patient will react to treatment based off their individual genetic factors, and we are excited to share how Proove has been helping achieve this at the 21st Annual Napa Pain Conference.

About Proove Biosciences

Our mission is to change the future of medicine by providing proof to improve healthcare decisions. We envision a future when clinicians will know how patients are likely to respond to medications before writing a prescription. We believe such knowledge can be provided by genetic testing: Using a simple cheek swab, Proove performs proprietary genetic tests in its CLIA-certified laboratory. Healthcare providers use the results to evaluate how their patients will metabolize medications, and to screen for the likelihood of medication misuse.

Founded in 2009 with offices in Southern California and the Baltimore-Washington metropolitan area, Proove Biosciences is the leader in genetics-related personalized pain medicine research with hundreds of clinical research sites across the U.S. For more information, please visit http://www.proovebio.com or call toll free 855-PROOVE-BIO (855-776-6832).

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Proove Biosciences Will Be Exhibiting at the 21st Annual Napa Pain Conference

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

It is 14 years since Tony Blair and Bill Clinton invited the world's media to the White House for an announcement that would have seemed like science fiction just a few years earlier: the entire human genome - the genetic blueprint of human beings - had been mapped for the first time.

Looking somewhat awestruck, the prime minister and the president promised their press conference would pave the way for 'a new era of genetic medicine'.

This was not a hollow pledge, but genomics is only now beginning to fulfil its potential.

How can investors gain the diversification that is important in all facets of investing in biotechnology through genomics? Read more: Six stocks and funds to give investors exposure to genomics.

The two world leaders were right in their view that genomics would prove to be a disruptive technology (not that they would have used the term).

But just as it took the mass-produced Ford Model T to translate the invention of the automobile into a technology that changed the world, so the first map of the human genome was not quite the game changer Blair and Clinton anticipated.

'The real catalyst for the take-off of genomics has been the next-generation technology that has brought the cost of gene sequencing to an incredibly low level,' says Jung Ryu, a life sciences tools analyst at New York-based fund manager OrbiMed Advisors, which runs the Biotech Growth and Worldwide Healthcare investment trusts in the UK.

'That first human genome project was completed at a cost of $3 billion (1.8 billion) - by the end of this year, it will be possible to buy table-top gene sequencing equipment that can do the same job for less than $1,000.'

At that price, genomics research is possible in university labs all around the world, and projects of previously unimaginable ambition become cost-effective.

For example, in July in the UK, the National Health Service began awarding contracts for its 100,000 Genomes Project, an initiative to map the DNA of 100,000 Britons by 2017.

Read more:
The genius of genomics

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Sublime- "What I Got" (cover)
Uploading a song a day for 30 days in September, raising money for the 2nd annual online fundraising event "Sing for Spinal Cord Injury". View all videos: http://www.facebook.com/singforspinalinj...

By: Haydon Entertainment

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Sublime- "What I Got" (cover) - Video

Recommendation and review posted by sam

Spinal Cord Injury takes on the Parallel Bars for the first time.
Getting up on parallel bards for the first time after spinal cord injury. This is was at Craig Hospitals 3rd floor gym.

By: alex2wr

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Spinal Cord Injury takes on the Parallel Bars for the first time. - Video

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Dr Adam Miller Talks Modern Medicine
Dr. Miller has experience as an oral and facial cosmetic surgeon, sleep apnea specialist, skin cancer expert, and is stem cell/ regenerative medicine and Age Management certified. He helped...

By: adam miller

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Dr Adam Miller Talks Modern Medicine - Video

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The treatment involves injecting up to 20 million stem cells into patients' brains. It was tested on patients at Glasgow's Southern General Hospital in 2012.

The Surrey-based company said it would work at 10 sites across the UK, including the Southern General, on a Phase II efficacy study of the ReN001 treatment involving 41 patients.

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The treatment is designed to deliver a meaningful improvement in upper limb function in disabled stroke patients.

In May, the company said data from a long-term follow- up involving 11 patients included in a Phase I safety study of ReN001 at the Glasgow hospital observed sustained reductions in neurological impairment and spasticity in most patients. No cell-related or immunological adverse events were reported .

Yesterday, Reneuron said it has also started a Phase I safety study at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee of its ReN009 therapy for people with lower limb ischaemia. It will involve nine patients.

Reneuron says the disease is common in patients with diabetes and can lead to amputation of the limb.

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Reneuron tests stem cell stroke treatment

Recommendation and review posted by simmons

Los Angeles, California (PRWEB) September 03, 2014

Stem Cell technology is the future; looking younger and better without plastic surgery is here now. Stem Cell Beautys debut product line StemLife is spearheading the current beauty renaissance. Among websites that provide stem cell beauty products, Stem Cell Beauty is in a league of its own.

Science is always advancing, why shouldn't your beauty products? questions Albert Faleski, Director of Operations at StemCellBeauty.com.

Most products on the shelves are outdated, whereas we take a different approach to find a formula that works with your body, reinvigorating your own stem cells to provide actual results.

The science behind StemLife is nothing short of groundbreaking. Its trademarked FixT Technology was achieved through reverse engineering to understand how the body maintains and heals itself with our own endogenous combinations of adult stem cells. With this knowledge they developed a means to mimic the natural stem cell processes in our body. Unlike other beauty brands, StemLife uses specific combinations of stem cell types, each cultured under specific state-dependent conditions, using cell types and states that are ideal for the particular tissue. It then creates a set of molecules from multiple stem cell types that is complete and fully formed, rendering maximum benefit and efficiency. This approach of stem cell skin care is extremely unique.

Other leading stem cell-based beauty companies use simpler technology where one stem cell type is chosen to make their molecules. This one-size fits all approach is not efficient and lacks the complexity of StemLifes FixT technology. Some companies mash the cells without allowing their molecules to fully process, which again leads to underachieving results. Many of the largest companies have made no attempt to use new science to formulate better products, providing their customers with over-priced serums proven to be archaic.

StemLifes cutting edge formula is shaping the future of hair regrowth as well, providing an ultramodern solution to those looking to slow the hands of time. Their most popular product, The Advanced Hair Treatment for Women, is essentially the hidden gem the world has been waiting for.

Its popularity stems back to the fact that it actually works. Faleski explained.

Were not big on gimmicks. We prefer showing our customer actual people who have had actual results with our products. After seeing life-changing hair growth with their own eyes, we are confident new customers will try it and have amazing results of their own. The Advanced Hair Treatment for Women is an incredible product that sells itself.

StemLifes most interesting product to date is the Natural Lash & Brow Lash Extend. This product boasts ingredients that are formulated to generate eyelash growth. In a market where eyelash extensions have been the go-to fix for longer lashes, being able to naturally grow them is a revolutionary concept.

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Stem Cell Beauty: The Online Shop Revolutionizing the Beauty Industry

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Due to the largest-ever Ebola virus outbreak in Africa and the treatment of a handful of patients with an experimental drug, there has been a resurgence of interest in therapeutics to treat the disease. One aspect that has been largely ignored is that the drug, called ZMapp, a mixture of three varieties of humanized monoclonal antibodieswhich bind, in vivo, to proteins on the surface of the Ebola virusrepresents an exquisite tour de force of genetic engineering.

The drug is obtained from genetically engineered tobacco plants that have been infected with genetically engineered plant viruses. During infection of the tobacco plants over the course of a week, the viruses, which are completely harmless to animals and humans, produce huge amounts of the antibodies. The plants are then harvested and homogenized and the antibodies are purified and formulated for administration. They bind to proteins of the Ebola virus in patients and elicit a humoral (antibody) and cellular (lymphocyte) response to the virus.

A seminal study of ZMapp in monkeys experimentally infected with Ebola virus was reported last week in the journal Nature. All 18 rhesus macaques treated with the drug recovered, even when it was administered beginning up to five days after infection. According to the journals press release, Three doses of ZMapp, administered at three-day intervals starting on day three, four or five after rhesus macaques were infected with Ebola virus, resulted in the survival of all 18 animals, while the three rhesus macaques that did not receive ZMapp all succumbed to Ebola virus infection by day eight. The drug reversed severe Ebola virus disease symptoms such as excessive bleeding, rashes and elevated liver enzymes. These findings are particularly encouraging because they provide precisely the kind of evidence of efficacy needed for regulatory approval of ZMapp, which will be evaluated by FDA under the animal rule. This applies to the development of drugs when human efficacy studies are not ethical or feasible.

Obtaining medicines from plants is not new. Many common medicines, such as morphine, codeine, cocaine and the laxative Metamucil are all purified from plants. But the promise of a relatively new approach called biopharming lies in using genetic engineering techniques to induce crops such as corn, tomatoes and tobacco to produce high concentrations of high-value pharmaceuticals.

Biopharming emerged with great promise about 15 years ago, with clinical trials of vaccines and drugs made in bananas, tomatoes and tobacco. Unfortunately, the field confronted the zeal and risk-aversion of regulators. In 2002, a company called Ventria purified two human proteins from genetically engineered rice and found that when added to oral rehydration solution given to children with diarrhea, they markedly shortened the duration of symptoms and reduced the incidence of recurrence. This potential public health breakthrough has been effectively blocked by the FDA: In 2010 the company approached the Food and Drug Administration for recognition that these proteins, which are found in human tears and breast milk, are generally recognized as safe (a regulatory term of art), but received no response. Ventria was unwilling to market the product without the FDAs endorsement, so it isnt available, depriving children in developing countries of a life-saving therapy.

More than a decade ago, scientists at Arizona State University created a biopharmed vaccine against Norwalk virus, the bug that annually causes millions of cases of diarrhea on cruise ships and in nursing homes. This vaccine, initially produced in tomato fruit and more recently in tobacco leaves, is still being studied to find an optimal formulation for administration.

The field testing of biopharmed plants has proved particularly problematic. In 2003 the U.S. Department of Agricultures Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced onerous new rules for the field testing of biopharmed crops. That ended most entrepreneurial interest in biopharming. Mapp Biopharmaceutical, the privately-owned company that makes the experimental Ebola drug ZMapp, boasts a workforce of nine people and has been completely financed by government grants and contracts.

USDAs rules on the cultivation of the biopharmed plants in the field impose highly prescriptive, one-size-fits-all design standards, as contrasted with performance standards, which would specify an end-pointsuch as gene-transfer below a certain levelthat must be achieved by whatever means. USDAs regulation fails to take into account the actual risks of a given situation.

The ostensible objective of the regulation is to avoid biopharmed drugs contaminating food, if crop plants are used in the drug production. The food industry, including groups such as the Grocery Manufacturers of America and the U.S. Rice Producers Association, has raised NIMBYnot in my backyardobjections. They claimed that biopharmed plants could contaminate their food-grade crops, but that fear is overblown and can be avoided in several ways. Production in a non-food crop is an obvious one, and that has affected manufacturing decisions for many new biopharmed vaccines and drugs. For example, the developers of the Norwalk virus vaccine switched from tomato to tobacco both to improve drug yields and to avoid becoming embroiled in disputes with NGOs and regulators about the supposed risks of genetic engineering and possible contamination of food.

The risk of plant-made drugs getting into food products is now virtually nonexistent because the companies involved have switched to production in facilities with rigidly controlled environments, mainly using tobacco. This approach was greatly advanced by the investment in 2010 of more than $80 million in facilities by the federal Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to expand the tobacco-growing capacity at several companies. The investment was driven by DODs desire to expand the nations ability to respond with new drugs and vaccines to emerging diseases or attacks with biological agents. These sorts of facilities, which have a high degree of control over growth conditions, are essential for the reproducible production of high-quality drugs. This constructive public-private collaboration set the stage for ZMapp, the Ebola drug, to be produced by one of the companies Kentucky Bioprocessing.

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'Biopharming' Offers A Powerful New Approach To Ebola And Other Diseases

Recommendation and review posted by Bethany Smith

Can genome-editing technology revive the idea of genetically modified livestock?

Four years ago, Scott Fahrenkrug saw an ABC News segment about the dehorning of dairy cows, a painful procedure that makes the animals safer to handle. The shaky undercover video showed a black-and-white Holstein heifer moaning and bucking as a farmhand burned off its horns with a hot iron.

Fahrenkrug, a molecular geneticist then at the University of Minnesota, thought he had a way to solve the problem. He could create cows without horns. He could save farmers money. And by eliminating the dairy industrys most unpleasant secret, he might even score a public relations success for genetic engineering.

The technology Fahrenkrug believes could do all this is called genome editing (see Genome Surgery and Genome Editing). A fast, precise new way of altering DNA, its been sweeping through biotechnology labs. Researchers have used it to change the genes of mice, zebrafish, and monkeys, and it is being tested as way to treat human diseases like HIV (see Can Gene Therapy Cure HIV?).

With livestock, gene editing offers some extraordinary possibilities. At his startup, Recombinetics, located in St. Paul, Minnesota, Fahrenkrug thinks he can create blue-ribbon dairy bulls possessing traits not normally found in those breeds but present in other cattle, such as lack of horns or resistance to particular diseases. Such molecular breeding, he says, would achieve the same effects as nature might, only much faster. In short, an animal could be edited to have the very best genes its species can offer.

That could upend the global livestock industry. Companies could patent these animals just as they do genetically modified soybeans or corn. Entrepreneurs are also ready to challenge the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which has never approved a GMO food animal. They say gene editing shouldnt be regulated if its used to merely swap around traits within a species. Were talking about genes that already exist in a species we already eat, says Fahrenkrug.

The use of the technology remains experimental and far from the food chain. But some large breeding companies are starting to invest. There may be an opportunity for a different public acceptance dialogue and different regulations, says Jonathan Lightner, R&D chief of the U.K. company Genus, which is the worlds largest breeder of pigs and cattle and has paid for some of Recombinetics laboratory research. This isnt a glowing fish. Its a cow that doesnt have to have its horns cut off.

GMO Bust

To date, GMO food animals have been a complete bust. After the first mice genetically engineered with viral DNA appeared in the 1970s, a parade of other modified animals followed, including sheep that grow extra wool thanks to a mouse gene, goats whose udders made spider silk, and salmon that mature twice as quickly as normal. But such transgenicsanimals incorporating genes from other speciesmostly never made it off experimental farms.

Opponents of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) gathered millions of signatures to stop frankenfoods, and the FDA has held off approving such animals as food. AquaBounty Technologies, the company that made the fast-growing transgenic salmon, has spent 18 years and $70 million trying to get the fish cleared. Two years ago, the University of Guelph, in Ontario, euthanized its herd of enviropigs, engineered with an E. coli gene so they pooped less phosphorus, after giving up hope of convincing regulators.

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On the Horns of the GMO Dilemma

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Let #39;s play FTB Monster #50 [FR HD] : Advanced genetics partie 3
Aujourd #39;hui on essai d #39;automatiser un peu plus le traitement des gnes que soit de la rcolte des matriaux alimentation des gnes finaux. J #39;utilise donc l #39;auto scrapper et l #39;auto splitter...

By: Raunok Toutencube

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Let's play FTB Monster #50 [FR HD] : Advanced genetics partie 3 - Video

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Minecraft: Attack of the B-Team ep 11- Advanced Genetics
Whats up guys! Today I work on getting my Advanced genetics set-up up and running. I also actually start getting the genes of 3 mobs. Hope you enjoy!

By: Deslayer1010

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Minecraft: Attack of the B-Team ep 11- Advanced Genetics - Video

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LAUSANNE, Suisse, September 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

Peu aprs l'obtention de la certification ISO 13485, Sophia Genetics devient la premire socit europenne obtenir le marquage CE-IVD visant l'usage clinique d'un portefeuille bio-informatique de squenage de nouvelle gnration (NGS) pour les tests gntiques de routine. Cette certification d'assurance-qualit constitue une tape importante dans l'lvation des normes pour les tests gntiques de routine et les diagnostics cliniques, et rend disponible sur un march plus vaste la plateforme de mdecine base sur les donnes de Sophia Genetics.

La certification signifie galement que les laboratoires cliniques peuvent dsormais tirer profit de la mthodologie d'assurance-qualit prouve de Sophia Genetics pour satisfaire leurs propres exigences en matire d'assurance-qualit. Les services de Sophia Genetics permettent l'accs des laboratoires cliniques l'expertise en assurance-qualit, tout en facilitant la demande de l'agrment ISO 15189 et des conomies de temps et argent, ainsi que la conformit la nouvelle directive CE-IVD. Sophia Genetics cherchera obtenir le marquage CE-IVD pour tous les tests gntiques qu'elle prend en charge.

Jurgi Camblong, PDG de Sophia Genetics, a dclar:

Les difficults lies l'analyse des donnes constituent historiquement un obstacle l'adoption gnralise des donnes de squenage de nouvelle gnration (NGS) pour les tests gntiques de routine des patients. Chez Sophia Genetics, nous comprenons la complexit des donnes NGS et la ncessit de les analyser selon une norme clinique. Nous avons mis au point des solutions qui s'attaquent mme aux principales difficults lies l'analyse des donnes que les logiciels de bio-informatique actuels n'arrivent pas rsoudre. Par consquent, nous avons rendu les tests gntiques NGS plus simples et plus rapides au profit des laboratoires clients.

propos d'ISO 13485

ISO 13485:2003 dfinit les conditions pour un systme de gestion de la qualit pour toute organisation qui doit dmontrer sa capacit fournir des dispositifs mdicaux et autres services connexes toujours conformes aux exigences des clients et aux exigences rglementaires applicables aux dispositifs mdicaux et aux services associs.

propos du marquage CE-IVD

Le marquage CE (CE-IVD) indique qu'un dispositif de diagnostic in vitro est conforme la Directive 98/79/CE relative aux dispositifs mdicaux de diagnostic in vitro et qu'il peut tre commercialis et distribu lgalement dans l'UE.

propos de Sophia Genetics

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Sophia Genetics devient la premire socit europenne obtenir le marquage CE-IVD pour l'usage clinique du ...

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4 hours ago

What if repairing large segments of damaged muscle tissue was as simple as mobilizing the body's stem cells to the site of the injury? New research in mice and rats, conducted at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center's Institute for Regenerative Medicine, suggests that "in body" regeneration of muscle tissue might be possible by harnessing the body's natural healing powers.

Reporting online ahead of print in the journal Acta Biomaterialia, the research team demonstrated the ability to recruit stem cells that can form muscle tissue to a small piece of biomaterial, or scaffold that had been implanted in the animals' leg muscle. The secret to success was using proteins involved in cell communication and muscle formation to mobilize the cells.

"Working to leverage the body's own regenerative properties, we designed a muscle-specific scaffolding system that can actively participate in functional tissue regeneration," said Sang Jin Lee, Ph.D., assistant professor of regenerative medicine and senior author. "This is a proof-of-concept study that we hope can one day be applied to human patients."

The current treatment for restoring function when large segments of muscle are injured or removed during tumor surgery is to surgically move a segment of muscle from one part of the body to another. Of course, this reduces function at the donor site.

Several scientific teams are currently working to engineer replacement muscle in the lab by taking small biopsies of muscle tissue, expanding the cells in the lab, and placing them on scaffolds for later implantation. This approach requires a biopsy and the challenge of standardizing the cells.

"Our aim was to bypass the challenges of both of these techniques and to demonstrate the mobilization of muscle cells to a target-specific site for muscle regeneration," said Lee.

Most tissues in the body contain tissue-specific stem cells that are believed to be the "regenerative machinery" responsible for tissue maintenance. It was these cells, known as satellite or progenitor cells, that the scientists wanted to mobilize.

First, the Wake Forest Baptist scientists investigated whether muscle progenitor cells could be mobilized into an implanted scaffold, which basically serves as a "home" for the cells to grow and develop. Scaffolds were implanted in the lower leg muscle of rats and retrieved for examination after several weeks.

Lab testing revealed that the scaffolds contained muscle satellite cells as well as stem cells that could be differentiated into muscle cells in the lab. In addition, the scaffold had developed a network of blood vessels, with mature vessels forming four weeks after implantation.

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Research in rodents suggests potential for 'in body' muscle regeneration

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FATHER-OF-TWO Johnny Pearson's life was saved when a stranger donated stem cells. The pair became friends and raised thousands for charity by running in the London Marathon together. By health reporter Kate Liptrot.

EARLIER this year Johnny Pearson became the first person to run the London Marathon alongside the unrelated stem cell donor who had saved his life.

The 44-year-old was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia in 2010 and often thought of the stranger had been who allowed him to have a bone marrow transplant two years later.

Earlier this year he met 23-year-old donor Sean Hagan for the first time - and weeks after meeting they ran the London marathon to raise money and awareness for the Anthony Nolan Bone Marrow Trust.

The wine trader from Thorpe Underwood was first diagnosed with the aggressive form of cancer in September 2010 when he had been to see the doctor after feeling slightly under the weather and the doctor had done a blood test just to make sure.

He was driving home from work when he received a phone call from the doctor to say that something was seriously wrong and he needed to turn around and go to York Hospital.

Johnny started chemotherapy days later and after six months of gruelling chemotherapy was finally in remission and returned home to his wife, Sarah, and young boys, Jack, now 12, and Archie, now ten.

But in July 2011, Johnny received the devastating news that leukaemia had returned. This time, Johnny would need a bone marrow transplant to survive and the race was on to find a matching donor.

It was the worst possible news and I thought that my life was over," Johnny said, "The last hope was a bone marrow transplant and I remember waiting to hear if there was a matching donor.

"It was a very difficult time for me and my family as we knew that my life was in someone elses hands. After what seemed like the longest few months of my life, my doctor sat me down and told me that Anthony Nolan had found a donor.

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Running with a real lifesaver

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Sep 01, 2014 The biobank comprises three cryotanks, equipped with cooled protective hoods, and a transfer station from which the sample containers are transported via a rail system. There is enough space for approximately 60,000 samples. Credit: Fraunhofer IBMT

For the development of new drugs it is crucial to work with stem cells, as these allow scientists to study the effects of new active pharmaceutical ingredients. But it has always been difficult to derive enough stem cells of the right quality and in the right timeframe. A central biobank is about to remedy the situation.

Human stem cells allow scientists to assess how patients are likely to respond to new drugs and to examine how illnesses come about. For a few years now, it has been possible to take tissue samples from adults and use reverse programming to artificially produce stem cells, which have the potential to create any kind of cell found in the human body. Before this discovery, pharmaceutical researchers had to use adult stem cells or primary cells, which have a more limited potential. Another option is to use stem cells derived from human embryos, but quite apart from the ethical considerations these cells are available only in limited diversity. The new technique makes it possible for instance to reprogram adult skin or blood cells so that they behave in a similar way to embryonic stem cells and can become any type of cell. "These are known as induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells for short," says Dr. Julia Neubauer from the Fraunhofer Institute for Biomedical Engineering IBMT in St. Ingbert, Germany. Although an increasing number of local biobanks have emerged in recent years, none of them fulfills the requirements of the pharmaceutical industry and research institutions. What is needed is a supply of 'ready-to-use' stem cells, which means large numbers of consistently characterized, systematically catalogued cells of suitable quality.

At the beginning of 2014, the IBMT teamed up with 26 industry and research partners to launch a project aimed at establishing a central biobank the European Bank for induced pluripotent Stem Cells (EBiSC) to generate iPS cells from patients with specific diseases or genetic mutations (http://ebisc.org/). Six months into the project and the first cells are available for use in the development of new drugs. By its three-year mark, it is hoped the project will be in a position to offer over 1000 defined and characterized cell lines comprising a hundred million cells. Such quantities are needed because a single drug screening involves testing several million cells. The main biobank facility is being built in the English city of Cambridge and an identical "mirror site" will be set up at the IBMT's Sulzbach location in Germany.

Gently freezing cells

The IBMT was brought on board for EBiSC by virtue of the comprehensive expertise it gained through participation in the EU's "Hyperlab" and "CRYSTAL" projects. For EBiSC, IBMT scientists are responsible for freezing the cells and for automating cell cultivation and the biobank itself. For an efficient long-term storage of functional stem cells, they have to be cooled down to temperatures of below 130 degrees Celsius in a controlled way. The scientists have to prepare the cells so they can survive the cold shock of nitrogen gas. The IBMT has, for instance, developed technologies that allow cells to be frozen in an extremely gentle way. "Cells don't like being removed from the surface they are grown on, but that's what people used to do in order to freeze them. Our method allows the cells to stay adherent," explains Neubauer.

Just as with foodstuffs, stem cells depend on an unbroken cold chain to preserve their functionality and viability. The scientists store the cells in special containers or cryotanks each measuring one by two meters. To remove a particular sample, the scientists have to open the cryotank. The problem is that this exposes all the other samples to warmer ambient air, causing them to begin to thaw out. "It's just like when you go to your refrigerator at home it's not a good idea to leave the door open too long," says Neubauer. She and her colleagues at the IBMT and industry partner Askion GmbH have together developed a stem cell biobank complete with protective hoods that protect the other samples whenever the cryotank is opened. In addition to maintaining the temperature, the hoods help keep another key shelf-life criterion, humidity, at a constant level.

Flawless freezing is important, but it is just as important to automate the whole process. "That not only guarantees consistency, it's what makes it possible to provide large quantities of cells of the required quality in the first place," says Neubauer. And the scientists' cooling process already boasts a finished technology. In their automated biobank, each cell sample is labelled with barcodes to allow them to be tracked. The samples travel along a conveyor belt to the individual cyrotanks, and a computer monitors the entire freezing and storage process.

Now the scientists are working on automating cell cultivation or the multiplying of the cells. There are essentially two possible approaches. One is to use robots that translate each preparation step into a mechanical one. The other is to use stirred bioreactors that provide free-moving cells with the ideal supply of nutrients and oxygen. Both technologies feature in the IBMT's portfolio. "By the time the project is completed, we'll know which is the better method for what we're trying to do," says Neubauer.

Explore further: Animal-free reprogramming of adult cells improves safety

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Central biobank for drug research

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Cell Therapy for Osteoarthritis
This video is about my PhD investigating the role of microRNAs during chondrogensis of human embryonic stem cells. This research is sponsored by the BBSRC DTP.

By: Rosie Griffiths

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Cell Therapy for Osteoarthritis - Video

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ReNeuron Group Quote more

Price: 3.62

Chg: -0.19

Chg %: -4.87%

Date: 16:38

Stem cell therapy group Reneuron said it remains on track with the first patients having been dosed in two its clinical trials.

The phase II trial for the ReN001 cell therapy candidate for stroke disability and the phase I trail for ReN009 cell therapy candidate for critical limb ischaemia have both begun.

The ReN001 trial is on course to have generated six month follow-up data by the end of 2015, while ReN009 study should give results in the first half of next year.

Chief executive officer (CEO) Michael Hunt said that Reneuron's core therapeutic programmes remain on track towards "further important clinical milestones" over the next 18 months.

"In particular, the commencement of dosing of patients in two new clinical trials, in stroke and limb ischaemia, marks another significant step in Reneuron's evolution into a fully-fledged clinical development business and a leading player in the increasingly exciting field of cell therapy and regenerative medicine," Hunt said.

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Reneuron on track for clinical milestones as studies get underway

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