Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Human Embryonic Stem Cells Reduce Multiple Sclerosis Symptoms

Declan and I have been sleeping in the same place since Sunday (on Thursday night we returned to the porch we have been sleeping in since 3 November 2006 to find an unlocked trellis gate; and on Friday night the gate was locked). We are tucked away, about twenty paces from the side entrance of a public building, down some twelve steps. It is actually quite cold and windy so probably not suitable for the winter. There is not a single pub, bar or club in the area; nonetheless, last night at about 11.30pm three or four guys came out of a car, congregated under the roof of the paved enclosure and lifted the place for fifteen minutes; then they left.

They were so out of context we take it as a warning. Declan jokes that perhaps we should make a stand and sleep outside Wood Street police station (the nearest station) – see blog "A trellis gate is installed in the porch" for Declan's latest letter to the Registrar of the European Court of Human Rights citing violation of Article 34 of the European Convention of Human Rights and requesting that the Court take this matter up with the Government (Article 34 establishes a duty on Convention states not to subject applicants to any improper indirect acts or contacts designed to dissuade or discourage applicants from pursuing a Convention remedy).

The majority of emails that I send to scientists and academics inviting them to sign Declan's petition to the UN on research cloning of embryos and stem cells are still going to spam boxes (or to cyberspace, see blog of 4 September "Obama: Yes to stem cells, funding"): yesterday I sent 127 and got three out-of-office-autoreplies; we also only got one signature.

Human embryonic stem cells reduce multiple sclerosis symptomshESCs reduce multiple sclerosis symptoms

Israel's Hadassah University Hospital and Hadasit, the technology transfer company of Hadassah Medical Organisation, announced Monday that scientists at Hadassah University Hospital have discovered a new application for human embryonic stem cells. They have demonstrated for the first time that transplanted neural cells derived from human embryonic stem cells can reduce the clinical symptoms in animals with a form of multiple sclerosis. The findings of the study are published in an article titled "Neuroprotective Effect of Transplanted Human Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Neural Precursors in an Animal Model of Multiple Sclerosis" in the Scientific Journal of PLoS One (see the article here).

The data presented in the report are the result of a long-term collaboration between Benjamin Reubinoff, director of the Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research Center at Hadassah Hospital (and a signatory of Declan’s petition), and Tamir Ben Hur, director of the Neurological Department at Hadassah Hospital. Michal Aharonowiz and Ofira Einstein both from Hadassah, as well as Hans Lassmann from the University of Vienna also contributed. "Human embryonic stem cell-derived neural precursors were transplanted into the brains of mice with an experimental form of MS. The grafted human cells integrated in the mice brains and migrated towards the sites of inflammation. They suppressed the inflammatory process in the brain, and consequently protected the animals from demyelination and nerve cell extension (axonal) injury, which are the pathological hallmarks of MS," said Reubinoff.

MS is the most common disabling neurological condition affecting young adults. MS is caused by an inflammatory reaction of the patient's own immune system against the myelin sheath that envelops the nerve processes. The destruction of myelin leads to the degeneration and loss of nerve cells and permanent neurological disabilities. MS affects 2.5 million people worldwide.

"We believe that the encouraging therapeutic effects in the rodent model of MS justify moving ahead to clinical studies. We also anticipate that the anti-inflammatory effect demonstrated in the pre-clinical study may be combined in the future with the use of other human embryonic stem cell derived neural cells to repair the myelin in the brain," said Reubinoff.

The website of Hadassah Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research Center states the following in respect of the potential of human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research for transplantation therapy:

Given their unique properties, hESCs are expected to have far-reaching applications in the study of early human development, the development of new drugs, and regenerative medicine. Human ES cell lines can serve as a renewable unlimited donor source of specialized human cells for transplantation therapy.

Human ES cell-derived mature cells could potentially be transplanted to restore tissue function in a wide range of human diseases that are associated with loss of cell function.

These conditions may include neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases, Multiple Sclerosis, cerebrovascular accidents, spinal cord injuries, as well as heart failure, diabetes mellitus, and others. The number of patients that potentially could benefit from transplantation of hESCs is overwhelming. For example there are over 16 million patients worldwide with neurodegenerative disorders, and over 120 million diabetic patients. Moreover, transplantation of genetically modified hESCs may allow the transfer and expression of foreign genes in target organs in the course of gene therapy.

While the promise of hESCs for cell and gene therapy is remarkable, further extensive research and development are required to exploit their potential for regenerative medicine.

An article dated 2 October 2007 in the Jewish Advocate, titled "Hadassah brings Stem Cell Summit to Boston", quoted Rafi Hofstein, president and CEO of Hadasit, as saying: "It is common knowledge that the medicine of the future will be based on stem cell-derived treatments." In 2000, the Hadassah University Hospital in Israel teamed with Monash University in Australia and the National University of Singapore to become only the second group in the world to develop human embryonic cell lines. "[The Hadassah University Hospital] in Israel is at the forefront of stem cell medical research," Hofstein said. "We believe we are doing the right thing and something of great importance." Research has been slowed, however, due to a lack of funding for U.S. researchers, according to Hofstein. He said Israeli researchers cannot fully collaborate with their American counterparts because the Bush administration has limited the amount of funding available through the National Institute of Health.

The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) group is the 3rd largest political group in the European Parliament. Speaking before the ALDE Conference "Secularism and Religions in the European Union" in the European Parliament (28-29 August), ALDE Group Leader Graham Watson (UK, LibDem) stressed that the Catholic Church has the right both to spread its word and to lobby governments with its points of view on matters like abortion, euthanasia and stem cell research. But Watson believes that "for policy makers reason has to be the basis. Faith should not underpin policy-making."