Stem cell therapy is paving its way to treat complex bone fractures. Hebrew University of Jerusalem Research has created a new technology, which uses stem cells to treat bone fractures. It has been proven that the novel method is more effective and suitable to heal complicated bone fractures that several patients are suffering from.
Prof. Dan Gazit, Dr. Zulma Gazit and Dr. Gadi Pelled, together with their team at the Skeletal Biotechnology Laboratory, Hebrew University Faculty of Dental Medicine reported their findings in the Journal stem Cells. The technology has already been successfully used at Hadassah University Hospital in Ein Kerem, Jerusalem to treat seven patients that suffered from complicated fractures.
The orthopedics standard treatments for complex bone fracture have either involved a long period of disability or amputation. Moreover, prosthetic implants do often fail after a while. The problem of constant bone losses does often result in non-uniting fractures, and more than a million of such cases are present in U.S per year.
Previously, multipotent stem cells (MSC’s or mesenchymal stem cells) were used as they can differentiate and transform into other types of cells. MSC has been considered an ideal biological therapy to alleviate disorders in the skeleton and complex fracture. The cells (MSCs) are comprised of adult stem cells, which can be segregated from various parts of the human body. This includes the isolation from adipose tissues and bone marrow. The isolation enables the MSCs to repair tissues that have been injured. The repairing capacity is not limited to only a particular type of tissues; bones, cartilage, heart muscles, invertertebral disc and tendon can be repaired.
The MSC isolation approach previously used was indeed not perfect. It required long period of growth in well designed incubators. This made the technique costly, lengthy and there was even risk that the therapeutic characteristic of the cells was degraded. This made the use of the stem cell to treat bone fractures unlikely, there was a need for more research and progresses until stem cells would be an ideal regenerative medicine.
Hebrew University group invented a new technology, called as immune-isolation. In this approach, MSCs are extracted from cells that exist in bone marrow sample, by the use of a particular antibody. Finding at the University showed that immune-isolated cells did eventually instantaneously structure new bone tissues after being implanted in animals in laboratories, there were no need for the long growth period in incubatory.
This findings triggered intense interest. Collaborative efforts within the Faculty of Dental Medicine established the clinical-grade protocol of immune-isolated MSCs. Consequently, Hadassah, began clinical trial in order to enable the use of immune-isolated MSCs for orthopedic surgery.
After the findings, as many as seven patients having bone fractures have been treated productively with this method. The patients are treated with a mixture of their own immune-isolated MSCs and other blood substances found in their body. This process is performed in only a few hours. There is no need to wait for weeks to grow cells in incubators in laboratories.
More research will probably enable immune-isolation technology to be used to treat other injuries that can be present in the skeleton. This includes problems related to tendons and our intervertebral discs. Gazit Group does firmly believe that soon immune-isolation technology can be used to alleviate morbidity that is a consequence of diseases and skeletal fractures. The technology might be able to regenerate injured and unhealthy patients.
Immuno-isolation technology will certainly soon be available as a highly advanced regenerative treatment, if not even a medicine.
Tue, Dec 1, 2009
Bioscience, Stem cells