{"id":1655,"date":"2021-02-08T11:53:54","date_gmt":"2021-02-08T19:53:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mydiabeticsoul.com\/?p=1655"},"modified":"2021-02-08T11:53:54","modified_gmt":"2021-02-08T19:53:54","slug":"another-stem-cellar-report-by-kevin-mccormack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/mydiabeticsoul.com\/?p=1655","title":{"rendered":"Another “Stem Cellar” Report by Kevin McCormack"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n
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New post on The Stem Cellar<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/td>\n

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Making a good thing\u00a0better<\/a><\/h2>\n

by Kevin McCormack<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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Thomas Edison<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Legend has it that Thomas Edison \u201cfailed\u201d 1,000 times before he managed to create the incandescent lightbulb. Edison says he didn\u2019t get discouraged, instead he looked at each unsuccessful experiment as being one step closer to finding the method that really worked. That\u2019s a lesson in optimism and persistence for all of us.<\/p>\n

Lineage Cell Therapeutics<\/a> has that same spirit. Lineage is trying to develop a stem cell therapy to help people with spinal cord injuries. CIRM invested<\/a> $14.3 million in the first version of this approach which produced encouraging results<\/a>. But encouraging is not enough. So, Lineage set about doing a complete overhaul of the therapy known as OPC1.<\/p>\n

The idea behind it is to turn embryonic stem cells into oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs). These OPCs are precursors to cells that play an important role in supporting and protecting nerve cells in the central nervous system, the area damaged in a spinal cord injury. By transplanting these cells at the injury site it\u2019s hoped they will help restore some of the broken connections, allowing patients to regain some movement and feeling.<\/p>\n

In the original trial many patients, who had been paralyzed from the chest down, regained some use of their arms, hands and even fingers. This was better than any previous therapy had managed. But for Lineage it wasn\u2019t good enough. So, they set about redesigning their whole manufacturing process, making improvements at every step along the way.<\/p>\n

In a news release<\/a> they outlined those improvements:<\/p>\n