February 11, 2022 News by Margarida Maia, PhD Blood Stem Cell Transplant May Help Immune System Longer Treatment with an autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (aHSCT) seems to reboot the immune system in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients for at least three years, a small study found. The study, āSustained immunotolerance in multiple sclerosis after stem cell transplant,ā was published in Annals of Clinical and…
November 1, 2021 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: Mono and MS, Cold and Inflammation, Mesenchymal Stem Cells, MS Smartwatch Mono as Child or Teenager Tied to Risk of MS as Adult in Large Study There’s been a lot of buzz about this study, but I don’t think anyone should be surprised about its results. For years, researchers have suspected a link between the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) ā the…
August 2, 2021 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: Stem Cells, Home Infusions, Hippocampus FDA Greenlights Stem Cells Trial Aiming to Improve Quality of Life I’m pleased every time I see stem cell research being approved. Hopefully, this will move us closer to approval in the U.S. for the use of stem cells as a treatment for MS. In this research, patients are…
July 28, 2021 News by Forest Ray PhD FDA Greenlights Stem Cells Trial Aiming to Improve Quality of Life The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given the green light to a Phase 2 clinical trial that will assess the efficacy of using adult mesenchymal stem cellsĀ (MSCs) to treat the symptoms of mild to moderateĀ multiple sclerosisĀ (MS). The non-profit Hope Biosciences Stem Cell Research Foundation (HBSCRF),…
March 26, 2021 News by Vanda Pinto, PhD NurOwn Cell Therapy Found Safe, Effective for Progressive MS in Phase 2 Trial NurOwn cell therapy led to significant improvements in the physical abilities, vision, and cognition of people withĀ progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) in a Phase 2 clinical trial, top-line data show. In addition to these positive efficacy results, BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics, NurOwn’s developer, announced that its cell-based therapy showed…
February 8, 2021 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: Plegridy, Telemedicine, AI for MS, Myelin Repair FDA Approves Plegridy as Intramuscular Injection for Relapsing MS A common patient complaint about Plegridy has been that its subcutaneous injection procedure results in injection site reactions. This new formulation is delivered into the muscle, rather than under the skin. The needle is longer, but Biogen pharmaceuticals thinks the…
February 1, 2021 News by Forest Ray PhD Potential for Stem Cells to Repair Myelin Focus of University Toronto Team Teams of scientists at the University of Toronto are sharing a nearly CA$21 million (about $16.36 million) award into research that might lead to self-repair treatments for multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neurological disorders, the university announced in a press release. Eleven teams at the university and its…
August 27, 2020 News by Joana Carvalho, PhD #MSVirtual2020 – MRI Changes Can Reflect Function in Progressive MS, Study Says Certain MRI measures of the brain and spinal cord directly associate with functional improvements in people with progressive multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study reports. According to BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics, these data will help in determining the benefits ofĀ NurOwn, the companyās stem cell-based…
June 5, 2020 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Ability to ‘Create’ Astrocytes Supports Their Damaging Role in MS, Like Diseases An inflammatory environment can turn astrocytes, key supportive cells for neurons, into their killers, fostering the progression of neurodegenerative diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study shows. This work, led by researchers at the New York Stem Cell FoundationĀ (NYSCF), created for a first time astrocytes derived…
May 8, 2020 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD ‘Transcient’ Damage to CNS Seen with Chemotherapy Used in Stem Cell Transplants for MS A high-dose chemotherapy combination given to wipe out the immune system before its rescue withĀ autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (aHSCT)Ā can cause “transient” damage to neurons and supporting cells of the central nervous system in people with aggressive multiple sclerosis (MS), a Canadian study reports. Nonetheless, its researchers believe…
May 7, 2020 News by InĆŖs Martins, PhD NurOwn May Curb Damaging Neuroinflammation in MS, Study Finds NurOwn, believed to haveĀ neuroprotective and repairing effects,Ā may also be able to curb the damaging immune responses that contribute to multiple sclerosis (MS) progression, a recent study found. This newly identified potential may extend the benefits of this cell-based therapy, its researchers believe. The findings were to be presented…
April 17, 2020 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Study of Stem Cell Therapy for Highly Active RRMS Honored by CR Forum The MISTĀ Phase 2 clinical trial, supporting the potential of hematopoietic (blood cell-producing)Ā stem cell transplant (HSCT) to significantly slow disability progression in highly activeĀ relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS)Ā patients, has received a Distinguished Clinical Research Achievement Award from the Clinical Research (CR) Forum. Five years after the transplant, most…
March 24, 2020 News by Margarida Azevedo, MSc ImStem Biotechnology to Launch Phase 1 Trial Testing IMS001 for MS The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has lifted the clinical hold and cleared the investigational new drug (IND) application to assess IMS001 in the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS), ImStem Biotechnology announced. The company plans to start a Phase 1 study in the U.S. this…
March 9, 2020 News by Catarina Silva Final Site Announced in Phase 2 Trial Testing NurOwn in Progressive MS The Partners Multiple Sclerosis Center at Brigham and Womenās Hospital has joined BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics in a Phase 2 trial exploring the safety and efficacy of NurOwn in the treatment of progressive multiple sclerosis (MS). This is the fifth and final clinical site participating in…
January 9, 2020 News by Vanessa Pataia New Trial Compares Stem Cell Treatment to Available Therapies for Severe Relapsing MS A new clinical trial is comparing the best available therapies to an experimental stem cell therapy to treat severe forms of relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS). At the moment, more than a dozen therapies have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of relapsing forms…
December 19, 2019 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD MS Patients Largely Favor Blood Stem Cell Transplants But Lack Understanding, Survey Finds ManyĀ multiple sclerosis (MS) patients consider autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (aHSCT) potentially effective in treating their disease, but most report needing more ā and more reliable ā information to make a reasoned decision regarding its benefits and risks, a survey found. Those who are dissatisfied with their current…
December 18, 2019 News by Mary Chapman BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics Wins 2020 āBuzz of BIOā Award For its promising investigational therapeutic approach to neurodegenerative diseases, including progressive multiple sclerosis (MS), BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics is theĀ Buzz of BIO 2020 winnerĀ in the Public Therapeutic Biotech category. The Buzz of BIO contest identifies U.S. companies with groundbreaking, early-stage potential to improve lives. The…
December 2, 2019 News by Alice MelĆ£o, MSc Mount Sinai Taking Part in Phase 2 Trial of NurOwn Cell Therapy in Progressive MS Mount Sinai Medical Center has joined withĀ BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics to explore the safety and efficacy of NurOwn as a potential treatment for progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) in an ongoing Phase 2 trial. The New York center is the fourth clinical site participating in the trial, in addition…
November 19, 2019 News by Iqra Mumal, MSc NMSS Awards $495K to Study Biomarkers in Phase 2 Trial of NurOwn in Progressive MS BrainStorm Cell TherapeuticsĀ received a $495,330 grant from the National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) SocietyĀ to support biomarker studies in its ongoing clinical trial testing the cell therapyĀ NurOwn in patients with progressive multiple sclerosis (MS). NurOwn is a treatment based on the patientsā own bone marrow-derivedĀ mesenchymal stem…
November 13, 2019 News by Joana Carvalho, PhD Single Dose of CD45-ADC Resets the Immune System, Delays the Onset of MS in Mice A single dose of CD45-ADC, an investigational targeted therapy being developed to treat different types of autoimmune diseases, is enough to reset the normal function of the bodyās immune system in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS), and to delay onset of the disease. Those findings…
September 13, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD #ECTRIMS2019 – Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplants Safe and Help Stop Progressive MS, Trial Data Show Transplanting mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) is safe and can delay disease progression in people with active, progressive multiple sclerosis (MS), according to results from a single-center clinical trial conducted in Israel. Six months after the transplant, a considerable proportion of patients showed no signs of disease activity, compared to…
September 12, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD #ECTRIMS2019 ā Promises and Warnings About Stem Cell Therapy Stem cell therapy, or stem cell transplant, is an emerging yet controversial treatment approach for multiple sclerosis (MS). While some data uphold it as one of the most efficacious MS treatments, to date there have been no controlled studies comparing it to conventional medicines and providing more robust…
August 20, 2019 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD In Brains Damaged by MS or Age, Cells Can Be Tricked to Promote Remyelination, Study Suggests Our brains ā much like our joints ā stiffen with age, causing brain stem cells called oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs) to lose their ability to proliferate and transform into oligodendrocytes,Ā the cells that produce myelin, an essential component for nerve cell communication, a study found. But tricking OPCs into sensing a…
August 6, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD Research Underway on Space Station Looking at Cellular Triggers of MS and Parkinson’s An ongoing experiment at the International Space Station may help identify triggers for multiple sclerosis (MS) andĀ Parkinson’s disease by studying how nerve cells and immune cells interact when exposed to microgravity. Using patient-derived cells, researchers will study the way nerve cells grow, survive, and change their gene…
August 2, 2019 News by Steve Bryson, PhD Rewind Therapeutics Receives Research Grant to Develop New Remyelination Medicines for MS The development of new medicines to treat myelin-related neurological diseases, such as multiple sclerosis (MS), has been given a boost by a ā¬2.9 million (about $3.2 million) research grant awarded to the Belgian biotech company Rewind Therapeutics by…
July 12, 2019 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Phase 2 Trial Testing NurOwn Therapy for Progressive MS Adds Third Clinical Site The Phase 2 clinical trial testing BrainStorm Cell Therapeuticās investigationalĀ NurOwnĀ therapy for progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) has added a third clinical site, the company announced. The trial (NCT03799718) now will enroll patients at the Keck School of MedicineĀ ofĀ The University of Southern California (USC), and its academic…
June 17, 2019 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Human Blood-brain Barrier in a Chip, Created in the Lab, May Help Design New Therapies, Study Shows By tweaking stem cells in a laboratory, researchers were able to generate a model of the human blood-brain barrier (BBB) in a chip. The BBB is a highly selective barrier that is damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS), allowing immune cells to reach the central nervous system and damage…
June 12, 2019 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Biotech Startup Receives Funding to Pursue Cell-based Therapies for Neurological Disorders Startup company Oscine Therapeutics has received an investment from Sana Biotechnology to support the research and development of cell-based therapies for a variety of neurological disorders, including multiple sclerosis (MS). This venture is based on work done over the past several decades in the lab of Steve…
June 4, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD AxoSim Licenses Mini-Brain Technology, Which May Speed Therapy Discovery for Neurological Diseases AxoSimĀ has acquired exclusive rights to lab-grown brain miniatures, coined “Mini-Brain,” a technology developed at Johns Hopkins University that uses stem cells to create models of the human brain in a dish. This technique may help speed therapy discovery for many neurological diseases, including multiple sclerosis…
April 30, 2019 News by Alice MelĆ£o, MSc Stem Cells in Mouse Hair Seen to Aid Growth of ‘Dense’ Myelin Sheaths Around Nerve Cells, Study Reports A subset of stem cells in hair follicles, called melanocytes, appear to do more than just give rise to mature melanocytes, cells that help to determine hair color. Those melanocyteĀ stem cells, or McSCs, that carry the CD34 protein were found in hair follicles from mice to differentiate into glia cells…