1,721,334 research outputs found
Le cellule staminali nella sperimentazione clinica
No full textL'intervento è atto a mostrare le molteplici applicazioni di cellule staminali nell'ambito delle sperimentazioni cliniche. Inoltre, alla luce dei recenti scandali, verranno fatti accenni sull'importanza del "rispetto delle regole" nell'iter relativo agli studi clinici stessi
Natural molecules with regenerative potential for salivary gland disorders
No full textThe major function of the salivary glands is to secrete saliva, which plays a significant role in lubrication, digestion, immunity, and the overall maintenance of homeostasis within the human body.Development of the salivary glands begins during the sixth to eighth embryonic week when oral ectodermal outpouchings extend into the adjacent mesoderm and serve as the site of origin for major salivary gland growth. Salivary glands may be affected by heterogeneous disorders, ranging from autoimmune to metabolic diseases. Many therapeutic approaches are employed to face salivary gland disorders, which include stem cell regenerative potentials. Most innovative studies also show a significative ability of natural compounds, among which flavonoids, polyphenols and fatty acids, in regenerating affected salivary glands thanks to their anti-oxidant, anti-apoptotic, anti-inflammatory and pro-angiogenic effects
Aspetti neurologici delle cellule staminali
No full textLe cellule staminali da cordone ombelicale rappresentano una duplice fonte, ematopoietica e mesenchimale, per la terapia cellulare; poiché derivano da un tessuto “a perdere” possiedono diversi vantaggi, tra cui la relativa facilità di ottenimento e la mancanza di implicazioni etiche, nonostante derivino dal compartimento fetale, di cui però costituiscono un annesso.
Benchè l’ambito ematologico sia quello ad oggi più studiato e sperimentato, l’applicazione delle cellule cordonali, soprattutto mesenchimali, al campo neurologico è in ampio sviluppo; esistono numerosi studi su modelli animali di patologie neurodegenerative, quali Alzheimer e Parkinson, che hanno riportato risultati promettenti. A partire da questi, sono stati proposti, ed alcuni sono ad oggi in corso, diversi studi clinici allo scopo di saggiare la sicurezza e l’efficacia del trapianto di cellule staminali cordonali nell’ambito delle patologie neurologiche. I principali meccanismi di azione ipotizzati per queste cellule si svolgono a livello paracrino nel sistema nervoso centrale, attraverso processi di tipo trofico o antiinfiammatorio.
I risultati ad oggi disponibili, cioè pubblicati, degli studi clinici completati sono purtroppo pochi e questo costituisce uno dei principali limiti all’avanzamento della conoscenza in questo ambito. Inoltre è comunque necessario comprendere meglio i meccanismi veri e propri che sono alla base dei miglioramenti riscontrati, in modo da poter perfezionare i protocolli di studio nei futuri trials clinici
New frontiers in muscle diseases
No full textCell therapy is one promising approach to correct genetic diseases by contributing to tissue regeneration; stem cells can be isolated from a healthy donor or, when possible from the same patient. In the first case cells will be transplanted under a regime of immune suppression while in the second case, cells will have to be genetically corrected before transplantation in the same patient from which they were derived. The overall objective of our work is the validation of a clinical treatment for patients affected by Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The project does the groundwork for a phase I/II clinical trial consisting of an intramuscular transplantation of autologous CD133+ stem cells after their engineering through a lentiviral vector. The trial is oriented to DMD boys as Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a X-linked disorder characterized by a mutation in dystrophin gene. Efficacy and possible adverse effects have to be evaluated to test whether this approach may represent a first step towards an efficacious therapy for muscular dystrophy. Our previous works indicated that CD133+ stem cells, a recently identified population of progenitor cells, produce functional improvement upon intra-arterial injection in a mouse model of muscular dystrophy. It thus could be possible to focus on this type of stem cell for autologous transplantation in DMD animal models. Recently transplantation of engineered dystrophic canine muscle-derived CD133+ cells gave promising results in Golden Retriever dystrophic dogs, the most reliable animal model that shows a form of dystrophy very similar to and even more severe than DMD. There is increasing concern in the community of patients that the promise of stem cell research to provide new therapies for yet untreatable diseases will not be fulfilled, at least in the time interval that will be relevant for those who are affected now. It is therefore imperative to move stem cell research into rigorously controlled clinical trials. We believe that the impact of this work will be remarkable, not only in case of a clear positive outcome, but also in case of a modest but significant clinical improvement: indeed it will convince the scientific, the medical and, most importantly, the patient community, that things are moving in the right direction, even though progress towards a definitive treatment will necessarily require further work and time
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