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News from PR Web Press Release Newswire
Dec. 18, 2006
Health News:
Scientific American.com Profiles First
Human Neural Stem Cell Transplant in the Country
Phase I trial of HuCNS-SC ™ to treat
Stem Cell
Batten Disease advances.
New York, NY (PRWEB) December 18, 2006 -- Scientific American's
science news web site, sciam.com, today posted the findings of the
first ever human neural stem cell clinical trial being conducted in
the United States. This is the first trial to use a purified
composition of human neural stem cells as a potential therapeutic
agent in humans.
StemCells Inc., (NASDAQ: STEM) a clinical-stage company focused on
the discovery, development and commercialization of cell-based
therapeutics to treat diseases of the nervous system, liver and
pancreas, is the biotech innovator behind this Phase I clinical
trial. StemCells is the first firm to directly identify and isolate
human neural stem cells from normal brain tissue. The company's
programs seek to repair or repopulate neural, liver or other tissue
that has been damaged or lost as a result of disease or injury.
The first transplantation of Stem Cells, Inc's proprietary human
neural stem cell product, HuCNS-SCä took place on November 15, 2006
at the Oregon Health & Science University's (OHSU) Doernbecher
Children's Hospital. The transplant is part of Stem Cells Inc's
planned Phase I clinical trial designed to evaluate the safety and
preliminary efficacy of neural stem cells, HuCNS-SC, as treatment
for infantile and late infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL).
This medical condition is often referred to as Batten disease, a
rare and fatal neurodegenerative condition afflicting infants and
children. The clinical trial is open label with two dose cohorts,
and is expected to enroll six patients during the next 12 months.
Batten disease is named after the British pediatrician who first
described the juvenile form of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL)
in 1903. The name is now commonly used to encompass three forms of
NCL, infantile, late infantile and juvenile onset. All forms have
the same basic cause; lack of a lysosomal enzyme and have a similar
progression and outcome. The different forms of NCL have
traditionally been classified by age of onset, but today the disease
is more precisely classifiable in terms of mutations in the specific
gene and enzyme causing the disease. Children with Batten disease
suffer seizures, progressive loss of motor skills, sight and mental
capacity, eventually becoming blind, bedridden and unable to
communicate. Today, Batten disease is always fatal.
Neural stem cells are harvested from the post-natal, post mortem,
human and animal brains for stem cell research. Investigation on
stem cell research will aid the science and medical community's
understanding of the nervous system and may assist in the
development and treatments for currently incurable brain diseases
and injuries. Stem cell research through clinical trial
investigation allows for the study of these neural stem cells as
transplantable tissue for the repair of injury such as that
sustained during traumatic brain injury, inherited generic disorders
or stroke for the repair of pathological processes such as those
seen in neurogenetic diseases or neurodegenerative conditions such
as Parkinson's or Alzheimer's disease.
At the end of this year, Scientific American's web site, sciam.com,
will be launching a new Health Channel on its navigation bar. This
channel will enhance the web's site ongoing and breaking science and
technology section in addition to showcase a series of topics
covering well-being, fitness and prevention.
About Scientific American
Scientific American.com (sciam.com), which debuted in 1996, has
grown into a dynamic online resource that provides coverage of the
latest in science and technology as well as health news articles
from current and past issues, podcasts, website exclusives, daily
science news, blogs and weekly polls. It has become a leading online
science health news and technology destination with more than
1,700,000 visitors per month.
For more than 155 years, Scientific American, one of the world's
most enduring and revered science and technology magazines, has
chronicled for its readers major and technology innovations and
discoveries using expert accounts and assorted journalistic features.
The magazine publishes 15 foreign language editions with a total
circulation of more than 1,000,000 worldwide.
http://prweb.com/releases/2006/12/prweb492101.htm#
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