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Hope on the Horizon

Written by Dr. Lana du Plessis on . Posted in Client Articles.

Depression therapy choices are fairly few, and many times they do not address the underlying problems. Before finding one that would effectively treat their symptoms, patients frequently need to try a number of medications or treatments. Many individuals are forced to take a prescription drug for the rest of their lives. These restrictions have compelled researchers to consider complementary therapies and drugs.

What Is Depression?

Depression can affect patients of any age; it can come and go and even last a lifetime. The way that depression affects the mind can dramatically alter how a patient feels, behaves, and thinks. Common symptoms of depression are detachment from interests and activities, low energy and/or exhaustion, difficulty concentrating, difficulty sleeping or excessive sleeping, and suicidal or death-related thoughts. It has been a goal of research to pinpoint the precise origins of depression.

What causes depression?

A variety of circumstances brings on depression. The likelihood of depression in a patient is increased by the following elements: trauma, hormones, genetics, inflammation, and changes in brain chemistry and structure.

What treatments are available for depression?

Therapy with a psychologist is among the most popular forms of treatment for depression. Many medical specialists would suggest long-term or short-term medicine, such as antidepressants, if treatment does not help, they will advise people who are dealing with depression to exercise. These treatments will be effective for many people, but regrettably, not all depressed patients will benefit from them. Some patients might not respond well to conventional therapy. These patients frequently have few options left to them. For this reason, scientists have investigated using stem cells to treat depression.

Stem Cells in the Brain

Once upon a time, scientists thought that a brain cell could not be regenerated or rejuvenated once it had died. However, stem cells were only discovered in the hippocampus of the brain 20 years ago by experts. The regulation of mood, memory, and learning are all functions of this area of the brain.

The stem cells are located in a significant pool in the hippocampus, which is the problem. The brain might be able to totally repair and get rid of any illnesses, such as depression, if stem cells were present across the entire brain. According to researchers, stem cells may contribute to the brain’s continued optimal performance.

These stem cells are thought to have the potential to lessen depression. More neurons could be produced by the stem cells, increasing the number of connections in the brain. Antidepressants and electroconvulsive therapy are two examples of modern therapies that urge stem cells to divide and produce new neurons. Exercise also has a comparable impact on the brain, according to researchers.

However, the brain’s deficiency of neurons or neurotransmitters may not be corrected by exercise or other treatments if stem cell proliferation is not sufficiently stimulated. The hippocampus may no longer contain sufficient stem cells to repair the brain’s damage. For this reason, researchers have investigated the use of stem cell therapy to treat a variety of psychological diseases, including depression.

Stem Cell Therapy For Depression

Stem cells have a remarkable ability to promote cell regeneration and lower inflammation throughout the body. Numerous anti-inflammatory and growth substances are released by stem cells everywhere they go. Intravenously administered stem cells may help a patient whose depression is caused by elevated levels of inflammation. Evidence suggested that this treatment helped mice with depression.

Researchers have extensively discussed the idea of infusing stem cells right into the hippocampus. A tempting possibility to lessen the symptoms of depression is to inject more potent stem cells. New neurons could grow all over the brain as a result of the recently injected stem cells.

Another possible therapy could activate the hippocampus’ stem cells, enabling the brain to generate new neurons. A medication might then be used to stimulate the stem cells once they have been implanted in the brain’s hippocampus. Newly transplanted stem cells would have a much better chance of developing new brain neurons and mending any harm that had already been done.

Fortunately, stem cells may provide some hope to people who suffer from depression. New therapy modalities are being developed thanks to stem cells, which the medical world had no idea was possible. It might be only a matter of time before stem cells can be used to treat depression in people.

Inherited Genetic Diseases and Scientific advances after the “The Boy in the Bubble”

Written by Dr. Lana du Plessis on . Posted in Client Articles.

Being diagnosed with SCID *(pronounced as “skid”) meant that he had no working immune system from birth. He could have died from any stray germs inhaled by breathing regular air or from touching someone else. Depending on which study one believes, one in 100,000 to one in 50,000 live births are claimed to be affected by SCID, which is a hereditary condition. In the United States, where over four million infants were born in 2014, that equates to 40 to 80 SCID infants each year.

His doctors tried a brand-new bone marrow procedure in October 1983 that didn’t demand a perfect blood match. The donor was Katherine Vetter, David’s four-year-old sister. Given the close genetic match between siblings meant that she was his best hope for a cure. The process appeared to work initially. However, the Epstein-Barr virus was dormant and undiagnosed in Katherine’s bone marrow. It turned out to be fatal, igniting malignant tumors that overran David’s body and he passed away shortly afterwards.

The epitaph on David Phillip Vetter’s gravestone correctly observes that “he never touched the world.” How could he have?

Since then, medical research has advanced to the point where, when performed within a baby’s first three months of life, a blood-forming stem cell transplant is typically successful in treating SCID. The ability to diagnose SCID early—even in utero—has considerably increased.

The success of bone marrow transplantation after birth is, however, constrained by the lack of suitable donors, disease-related harm already done to the child, the child’s immune system rejecting the donor cells, and, in some cases, graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), in which the donor cells reject the baby’s tissue.

In some cases of genetically inherited diseases, prenatal intervention may be considered. Given that the genetic disorder causes ongoing damage to the fetus which can be avoided through earlier treatment. As the treatment will require blood-forming stem cell transplantation, it is preferable to consider intervention prior to birth.

Fast-forward to the present

Today, fetal DNA collected in the first trimester can be used to correctly diagnose a wide range of inherited genetic illnesses in the early stages of development. Most often, testing is carried out because the patient is known to be a carrier of the ailment, or because the condition is known from family history, or because the patient and their partner have been recognized as carriers. In many inherited diseases blood-forming stem cell transplantation from a donor can be used to treat these diseases, either prior to birth or immediately thereafter. Options for treatment vary according to the condition.

Gene therapy, which is still in the clinical testing phase, might be a new weapon in the medical armory. A healthy gene is introduced into a patient’s system using a safe virus to replace a damaged gene that is the cause of illnesses like immune insufficiency, sickle cell anemia, and hemophilia. The curative potential of gene therapy is generally acknowledged. But since it was first used in 1990, it has had both successes and setbacks in equal measure, and the Food and Drug Administration is yet to give it the thumbs up.

The following Inherited Genetic Diseases might be treated in-utero with normal blood-forming stem cell transplantation i.e. Hemoglobinopathies, Immunodeficiency Diseases, Inborn Errors of Metabolism, Mucopolysaccharidoses, Mucolipidoses, Osteopetrosis, Diamond-Blackfan syndrome, and Fanconi anemia. Current gene-editing stem cell therapy for sickle cell disease awaits FDA approval towards the end of 2023. The use of Engineered Stem Cells for transplant has not been fully approved in any of the other diseases.

The scientific advances provide David’s family a reason to celebrate every day, especially on his birthday, even if the loss of a child never goes away. Because of David, it is now possible to screen newborns for many genetically inherited diseases as well as immunological illnesses. There are approximately 400 immunodeficiency conditions that are currently treatable before a patient contracts a potentially fatal infection. Since David was the first patient, numerous more can now be treated with blood-forming stem cell transplantation, one of the greatest scientific breakthroughs of our time.

The Power of Placental Stem Cells

Written by Dr. Lana du Plessis on . Posted in Client Articles.

As part of the baby’s life support system, the placenta transfers oxygen and essential nutrients between the mother and the child. Placental stem cells have enormous potential in regenerative medicine.

In treatments across the world, the power of placental banking is already becoming apparent. The placenta and amniotic membrane have been utilized to treat wounds and speed up recovery since the early 20th century, including diabetic ulcers, eye disorders, and wound healing, respectively.

What is Placenta Tissue?

The placenta is made up of a variety of important tissues, for example, blood-forming stem cells and mesenchymal stem (MSCs). There are various immune cells at the foetal-maternal interface and an abundance of MSCs are found in the placenta.

In the past two decades, it has become more common for parents to want to preserve both the MSCs made by the placenta and their blood-forming counterparts. There are now about 25 clinical trials looking at the use of MSCs from the placenta in conditions such as multiple myeloma, heart disease, endometrial disease, brain tumors, etc. Umbilical cord blood banking saves lives all around the world, but placenta-derived non-blood-forming cell banking could benefit from already-in-place banking practices and create the framework for clinical studies using placenta-derived stem cell therapies in regenerative medicine. In the future, these cells might be combined with or employed independently of their blood-forming counterparts for therapeutic purposes.

The Value of the Placental Stem Cells

CryoSave promises to isolate specific therapeutic cell types. We offer to isolate chorionic villi cells and amnion, as opposed to simply storing ‘placental tissue’.

Amniotic Membrane

It begins as a sheath around the umbilical cord, which evolves during pregnancy into a thin lining of the placenta sac. Placenta tissue is particularly significant because it contains collagen, fibronectin, and hyaluronic acid; these three components are linked with enhanced healing.

The amniotic membrane also contains a combination of growth factors and anti-inflammatory proteins, which can help cells communicate when the body is damaged or diseased. There is also evidence that placenta tissue is antimicrobial. The amniotic membrane is non-immunogenic – it can be used to treat unmatched patients: parents, siblings, or other, more distant relatives.

Amniotic membrane cells have been administered to babies with broncho-pulmonary dysplasia and found to be safe and well-tolerated.

Placental Stem Cells

The chorion is the outer membrane of the sac that holds your baby during your pregnancy. As your baby develops, the chorionic villi maximize contact with mum’s bloodstream to ensure they receive all the essential nutrients and cells they need to grow in the womb. The chorionic villi are rich in regenerative placental stem cells.

By storing the placental cells, these cells can continue to support your baby’s health for years to come. It is well known that the placenta contains mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) or mesenchymal-like stem cells, which are multipotent in nature, meaning that they can differentiate into specialized cells with specific functions. Scientific studies have shown that these cells can repair bones, cartilage, tissues, and many more.

The Potential

Regarding the potential applications of placental tissue stem cells in regenerative medicine, the options are virtually limitless. Over 100 regenerative medicine clinical trials globally are presently using these specific stem cells for therapies like:

Treatment using Amniotic Membrane includes: Ulcers, Burns, Eyes

Treatment using Placental Stem Cells includes Osteoarthritis, Type 2 Diabetes, Ischaemic Stroke, Crohn’s Disease, and many more.

Protecting Your Family’s Future

You can safeguard the long-term health of your entire family and guarantee that your family has access to the newest regenerative medicines as soon as they become available by gathering and keeping the placental tissue from your newborn.

Why Store Placenta?

Choosing to collect your placenta is like investing in the future of your child. It guarantees that when cutting-edge new medicines become available, they can have them. Perinatal cells, derived from the placenta, possess more potential in various treatments due to their youthful and impressionable nature.

  • Storing the placenta together with cord blood tissue, maximizes the number of cells parents can store.
  • It provides access to as many regenerative therapies as possible, as they become available.
  • More cells stored could enable more treatments or mean the difference between treating a small child or a fully-grown adult.
  • More types of cells can be stored for many different applications, and a wider range of diseases, and ailments can be treated.

Secure and distinct cells

The placental stem cells are distinct. They are a powerful match for your child and can be utilized in therapy for the family as well. You can safeguard the long-term health of your entire family by selecting placenta collecting.

You can increase the variety of cells your baby has access to and give them the most treatment possibilities by conserving placental cells and amniotic membrane along with your baby’s umbilical cord blood and umbilical cord tissue.

United in Hope

Written by Dr. Lana du Plessis on . Posted in Client Articles.

Why Does It Matter?

The importance of DKMS Sunflower Day cannot be overstated. Blood cancers, collectively, are one of the most common types of cancer and can affect people of all ages. Patients diagnosed with these diseases often require stem cell transplants as part of their treatment, and finding a suitable donor can be a challenging and time-sensitive endeavour. DKMS Sunflower Day plays a vital role in addressing this challenge by:

  1. Raising Awareness: The initiative educates the public about the prevalence of blood cancers and the urgent need for stem cell donors.
  2. Registering Donors: It encourages individuals to join the stem cell donor registry, expanding the pool of potential matches for patients in need.
  3. Offering Hope: For patients in search of a matching donor, DKMS Sunflower Day represents a ray of hope in their battle against blood cancer.

The Need for Stem Cell Donors

Stem cell transplantation is a crucial treatment option for many blood cancer patients. These procedures involve replacing the patient’s diseased or damaged blood-forming cells with healthy stem cells from a matching donor. The key reasons for the need for stem cell donors include:

  1. Diverse Genetic Profiles: Finding a donor with a matching tissue type can be challenging due to the diverse genetic backgrounds of potential recipients.
  2. Limited Family Matches: Not all patients have suitable family members who can serve as donors.
  3. Global Search: In many cases, the search for a donor extends beyond national borders to locate the best match.
  4. Urgency: Some patients require rapid transplantations to increase their chances of survival.

Donated Stem Cells vs. Umbilical Cord Stem Cells

When it comes to stem cell sources, there are two primary options: donated stem cells from adult donors and umbilical cord stem cells stored at birth. Here are the key differences between the two:

Donated Stem Cells:

  • Source: Donated stem cells are typically collected from adult donors.
  • Matching Process: Donors must be a close match to the patient’s tissue type.
  • Procedure: Stem cells are collected through a procedure similar to a blood donation or bone marrow aspiration.
  • Availability: Requires finding a willing and suitable donor from the registry.

Umbilical Cord Stem Cells:

  • Source: Umbilical cord stem cells are obtained from the umbilical cord and placenta after a baby’s birth.
  • Matching Process: Cord blood stem cells have less strict matching requirements, making them more readily available for transplantation.
  • Procedure: Cord blood stem cells are collected at birth and stored in a cord blood stem cell bank for future use.
  • Availability: Immediate access to a baby’s own cord blood or potentially compatible cord blood units from public cord blood banks.

Conclusion

DKMS Sunflower Day is a powerful reminder of the impact that individuals can have in the fight against blood cancers. Stem cell transplants could save lives, but they depend on the availability of suitable donors. As expectant parents, you have a unique opportunity to make a difference. Consider saving your baby’s umbilical cord blood and tissue stem cells at birth. These cells may prove invaluable not only to your child but also to others in need, offering hope and healing to those facing the challenging battle against blood cancers. Embrace the sunflower’s spirit of hope and help shine a light on the path to recovery for countless patients around the world.

Spring Babies

Written by Dr. Lana du Plessis on . Posted in Client Articles.

Let’s find out more about the birth season and your baby.

The Sunshine Effect

The sunshine effect is a natural phenomenon. If you’ve ever encountered a spring newborn radiating boundless cheerfulness, you can likely attribute their sunny disposition to the season of their birth. Spring-born individuals often find themselves wired for a lifetime of optimism and happiness.

Furthermore, they tend to experience fewer long-term mental health issues and exhibit a greater degree of imagination. Interestingly, attention deficit disorder is less prevalent among spring babies.

Birth Season & Allergies

Surprisingly, research indicates that fall and winter newborns face a higher risk of developing allergies, hay fever, asthma, and eczema when compared to their spring-born counterparts.

On the other hand, spring babies enjoy a lower likelihood of allergies. Still, they do face a reduced risk of respiratory infections.

Though the exact causes remain elusive, environmental influences across seasons are believed to play a pivotal role in a child’s future health and well-being.

Heart Matters & Spring Babies

While spring babies might experience fewer allergies and colds, they are more likely to encounter heart-related issues, including heart disease.

The silver lining, however, is that most cardiac conditions can be effectively managed through lifestyle adjustments such as regular exercise and a balanced diet.

Anorexia & Hashimoto’s Connection

Research suggests that Anorexia and Hashimoto’s are more likely to develop in spring newborns. The factors contributing to this phenomenon remain uncertain but include considerations such as maternal vitamin D levels, climatic variations, prenatal illnesses, and nutritional preferences.

Spring babies also exhibit an elevated risk of developing Hashimoto’s disease. This autoimmune condition leads to chronic inflammation and thyroid gland dysfunction but can be treated.

Multiple Sclerosis and Autoimmune Links

Spring-born individuals also face a higher incidence of multiple sclerosis, a degenerative autoimmune condition that affects the nervous system. Some theories suggest that low vitamin D levels and limited maternal sun exposure during pregnancy may contribute to the development of autoimmune illnesses.

Bedtime Variations

Research findings indicate that babies born in Spring and summer tend to have later bedtimes compared to their autumn and winter-born counterparts.

Interestingly, girls generally exhibit earlier bedtimes, regardless of their birth season. This suggests that parents of spring and summer babies may encounter more restless nights.

Career Paths

Intriguingly, studies have found a correlation between birth season and career paths. CEOs and pilots are more likely to be born in the Spring, highlighting the multifaceted impact of seasonality on various aspects of life.

Epigenetics and Birth Season

The question arises: To what extent does our health and identity at birth depend on epigenetic alterations that occur during prenatal development? As discussed in our previous article on epigenetics and maternal health (1-4), the answer appears to be a resounding yes.

The interplay between weather, illnesses, dietary practices, stress, and maternal health during pregnancy collectively shapes the character and health of individuals born in different seasons. Birth season, it seems, leaves a lasting imprint on our lives, influencing our health and personality traits in multifaceted ways.

In Conclusion

Interestingly, it seems that your birth season has a vast influence on your life, your career choices, and your personality. Spring babies seem to be more cheerful people who are multi-talented.

Spring babies don’t suffer as severely from allergies and respiratory issues. However, they seem more predisposed to other conditions, including cardiac disorders, Anorexia, and Hashimoto’s.

Spring is the season of new life, and we can’t wait to see what it has in store for us.

Epigenetics Changes and Women’s Health

Written by Dr. Lana du Plessis on . Posted in Client Articles.

Epigenetic modifications include:

  1. DNA methylation,
  2. Histone modifications,
  3. Chromatin remodeling and
  4. Non-coding RNA action.

These are rather technical terms, but to explain in simple terms:

  1. DNA methylation is a biological process by which methyl groups are added to the DNA molecule. Methylation can change the activity of a DNA segment without changing the sequence.
  2. Histone modifications provide an important layer of regulation for chromatin functions and are critical for processes. These range from DNA replication to transcription,  cell-cycle regulation to differentiation, and tissue specification during the development of numerous diseases.
  3. Chromatin remodeling is the dynamic modification of chromatin architecture to allow access of condensed genomic DNA to the regulatory transcription machinery proteins, and thereby control gene expression.
  4. Non-coding RNA action essentially involves the way genes are expressed.

The effects of people’s experiences and environments on brain architecture and long-term physical and mental health outcomes are now being studied in the context of the epigenome. There are phases in a person’s life cycle when they are particularly vulnerable to epigenetic influences. These include the making of eggs and sperm, fertilization, and early embryo development. These are also windows of opportunity for interventions during the reproductive life cycle of women to improve maternal-child health. Therefore, epigenetic influences are involved in the regulation of foetal development and the pathophysiology of adult diseases such as cancer, diabetes, obesity, and neurodevelopmental disorders. It has also been found that various epigenetic mechanisms may be involved in the pathogenesis of preeclampsia and intrauterine growth restriction.

Why do epigenetic changes increase with age?

As we age, our cells are exposed to environmental factors and are subject to negative changes in their genome through epigenetic mechanisms. Such changes accumulate over time and have been correlated with the decline observed in aging cells. Therefore, a key aspect of human health and disease is to better understand the mechanisms of epigenetic changes that occur with age, and the factors that may ease or accelerate them.

Today, more and more women are having children later, which is mainly due to social and economic factors.  Combined with this, the increasing maternal age has caused a decline in fertility, and problems with pregnancy. In view of all these factors, there is an increasing demand to understand the various consequences aging has on human reproduction and to identify the biological processes that result in these changes. As part of this, age-related epigenetic changes have been found in female reproductive organs, and the effect these changes may have on reproductive outcomes forms an essential part of women’s health.

Many studies on maternal nutrition during pregnancy, or just before the embryo is implanted, have shown that nutrition has a major impact on the epigenome, as well as on the baby’s phenotype (i.e. observable traits, metabolism, behavior, or susceptibility to disease). The altered epigenetic regulation of genes is associated with an increased tendency to disease later in life. To illustrate this; a low protein diet during gestation has shown how epigenetic changes, induced by certain dietary exposures, may be associated with the development of heart disease, insulin resistance, eating disorders, obesity, and other metabolic diseases in offspring. Mothers that eat a high-fat diet during gestation produces changes in the baby’s epigenome, which increase the risk of developing diseases such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and other chronic diseases. On the other hand, an unbalanced folate diet can induce the development of neurological diseases, and even cancer, in offspring (3).

Based on the above there is increased proof that epigenetic processes play a central role in stem cell biology and are critical for deciding how genes are expressed during cell diversification and controlling growth and development. Epigenetics not only helps in stem cell proliferation and their maturation into specialized cells, but it also plays an important role in converting the already mature cell into another cell of a different lineage.

Thus, a better understanding of the role epigenetics plays in normal development, and how these are affected by aging, may provide valuable insight into reproduction, reproductive aging, and many other important aspects of our health. There are currently 28 clinical trials researching the impact of epigenetics changes involving stem cells in cardiovascular and lung disease, fertility, and haematological cancer, to name a few (4).

Advantages of Umbilical Cord Blood over Bone-Marrow and Peripheral Blood Progenitors Transplants

Written by Dr. Lana du Plessis on . Posted in Client Articles.

The transplant of UCB has several advantages over bone marrow and blood stem cells. These include less stringent immune-matching (HLA-matching) criteria, the naïve state of cord blood stem cells which leads to a lower incidence of rejection, better stem cell growth potential, immediate availability of the cryopreserved stem cells, and a lower risk of relapse. Currently, even the transplant rate and success of donor UCB transplants in adults have improved.  Although there are disadvantages to using donor UCBs, such as slower engraftment of certain cells and overall immune recovery, these two factors have been overcome by various techniques. Some of the techniques for donor UCBs include the improvement of recovery of certain types of blood cells that helps with immune recovery and engraftment, multiplying -,  “homing” – and delivery of the stem cells, and the use of double cord blood units per transplant (1,2). Another way to improve the scope of application of UCB transplants in elderly and really sick patients is to have less intense treatments before transplants which allow for better engraftment after the transplant.

In addition to the oncology applications, UCBs have also been used in the treatment of several nerve and heart disorders with varying degrees of success. These diseases, once approved, will hold great promise for the application of UCB transplants in the future.

Unlocking the Mind

Written by Dr. Lana du Plessis on . Posted in Client Articles.

The hallmarks of psychiatric disorders, on the other hand, are disturbed behavioural and emotional states. Neuronal messaging has been associated with depression, behavioural problems, posttraumatic stress disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and schizophrenia. These disorders can affect social interactions, mood, concentration, memory, and body control.

The role of stem cells in treatments

Although many of these diseases are treated with medicine and conventional therapies, the clinical use of stem cells in mental illnesses remained controversial until recently. With new technologies, adult somatic cells can be reprogrammed into cells with stem cell properties by introducing specific transcription factors, they are then called “induced pluripotent stem cells” (iPSCs). These iPSCs can be further manipulated to then become any type of cell or tissue, including neurons. However, the use of stem cells from the umbilical cords of healthy newborns has allowed for broader applications of stem cell research and possible treatment because they are more naïve and pliable.

The main value of stem cells is that they influence the vascular, nutritional, functional, inflammatory, and immune environment of the brain, thereby possibly aiding in cognitive and emotional recovery. Stem cells work in two ways, i.e., through direct cell-to-cell interaction, and through the production and release of growth, immunoregulating-, and anti-inflammatory factors.

Stem cells can physically regenerate the central nervous system and hold vast benefits for the treatment of neuronal and psychiatric disorders. Stem cell transplants can help in regenerating neurons,  can assist in immune and vascular repair as well as in controlling inflammation. Many psychiatric illnesses are a manifestation of inflammatory and autoimmune mechanisms that are faulty. Therefore, given the ability of stem cells, many immune-, inflammation-, neurodegenerative- and vascular-based psychiatric disorders can be treated by using stem cell transplants. Thus, future innovations based on the use of stem cells hold great promise to extend our knowledge, diagnosis, and, possibly, treatment of these psychiatric disorders or “brain disorders”.

In the past two decades, more and more studies have been conducted on neurological and psychiatric disorders to establish the value of treatment using stem cells.

Unlocking the Future of Healthcare

Written by Dr. Lana du Plessis on . Posted in Client Articles.

Cord blood stem cells help treat several diseases like leukemia, genetic disorders, diseases of the immune system and much more. Cord blood stem cells have the ability to treat more than 80 approved conditions and are being studied in more than 7,600 clinical trials for numerous regenerative therapies. Today, cord blood banking is already changing lives and there have already been more than 40,000 cord blood transplants around the world since the 1980s (2).

Currently, new therapies are continually being developed to use these stem cells. Additionally, stem cells found in the umbilical cord tissue and placenta can also be banked.

The umbilical cord itself is also a rich source of mesenchymal stem cells and these stem cells are found in the “Wharton’s Jelly”. As with cord blood-forming stem cells, these tissue-forming stem cells are also a rich and powerful source of stem cells. Both these types of stem cells have strong regeneration and differentiation capacity, possess a high level of stem cells, exhibit less immune rejection, and have fewer DNA mutations, are easily accessible and valuable stem cell sources.

Cord tissue contains various exceptional cell types, which might in the future provide therapies for heart disease, spinal cord injury, autism, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, and many more. In the correct environments and given the right signals, the umbilical cord stem cells can differentiate into many different cell types. As a result, they are very valuable in treating an increasing selection of medical conditions where specialised cells are injured and need replacing (3).

The term ‘cord blood banking‘ means saving the newborn stem cells found in the blood of the umbilical cord, tissue and/or the placenta. Once the baby is born, it is possible to collect these cells and bank them in cryogenic storage for many years (currently CryoSave saves these stem cells for an initial period of 20 years, after which the period can be extended). The stem cells in cord blood can be collected without any risk to the baby or mother. This is the only chance you will get to store these types of stem cells – in the moments after birth. You can store the most powerful source of stem cells within minutes after birth if you choose to bank your baby’s cord blood and tissue. The cord blood and cord tissue stem cells are younger, have less exposure to harmful environmental factors or disease and are more “unspoiled” than adult stem cells.

Storing your baby’s own cord blood safeguards that they will always have immediate access to their own stem cells which is a perfect stem cell match. Thus, any stem cell treatment or future possible organ replacement is available without the chance of rejection. Your baby’s stem cells may also be a match for a sibling (25%) and is always a partial match for the parents (50%).

Cord blood banking is non-invasive and should have no impact on your birth plan or delivery process.

Your gynaecologist or midwife can perform the collection after your baby is safely delivered. Once they collect the cord blood and a piece of the cord tissue in a sterile manner, and after your maternal bloods have been collected, our dedicated medical couriers will come to the maternity ward to collect the sample and bring it directly back to our laboratory. The cord blood and tissue will be processed, cryopreserved and cryogenically stored for 20 years or more, according to our AABB standard approved procedures. Various other tests will be performed to ascertain the number of stem cells, viability, sterility, recovery percentage and maternal infectious marker status.

CryoSave understands that the day of the birth of your baby is one of the most significant days of your life. We make the process as seamless as possible from beginning to end. Once you have decided to bank your baby’s stem cells with us, we will organise everything for you. On the day of the birth, you only have to ensure that you take the Collection Kit with you. Your gynaecologist or midwife will perform the stem cell collection using the items found in your collection kit. We will assist to arrange for a nurse to draw the maternal bloods if required. All you have to do is call CryoSave and we will arrange collection using our dedicated courier to pick up the sample. CryoSave will take care of everything else for you.

Your newborn may form part of the next generation to survive beyond 100 years of age. The likelihood is they will need stem cells to keep healthy. These umbilical cord blood and tissue stem cells, in the future, could be used for the treatment of diseases for your baby and even your family and will repair and heal damaged tissue or even regenerate organs.

This is why over 4 million families worldwide have chosen to protect their baby’s health by banking their cord blood and tissue.

Revolutionizing Blood Cancer Treatment

Written by Dr. Lana du Plessis on . Posted in Client Articles.

The following examples illustrate the incredible progress made with cord blood transplants:

In May 2023, Duke University of Medicine published an article about the increased use of cord blood transplants in adults. Dr. Edwin Alyea, Chief Medical Officer stated that”. “More patients can benefit from transplants now because there are more donor options.”

In  September 2022, the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre published an article about how cord blood transplants have saved lives in patients with Leukemia, Lymphoma, and Myeloma.

Kirsten Riemer, age 41 of African American and Creole descent, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia in 2016; and received a cord blood transplant in 2016. She is still disease-free after 7 years.

Ali Abouzari, age 67 of Persian descent, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in 2009; and received a cord blood transplant in 2010.

Stuart Apfel, age 63 of Ashkenazi (Eastern European) Jewish descent, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 2017; and received a cord blood transplant in 2018.

Donamarie Gerardi, age 52 of Southern Italian descent, was diagnosed with diffuse large B cell lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia in 2001; and received a cord blood transplant in 2006.

Wincheng Lin, age 41 of Chinese descent, was diagnosed with acute leukemia in 2006; and received a cord blood transplant in 2009.

Keelly Nieves, age 41 of Colombian descent, was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome in 2020; and received a cord blood transplant in 2020.

Ankit Sundaram, age 33 of Indian descent was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in 2019; and received a cord blood transplant in 2019.

All these above patients have survived their cancer and are still disease-free today and living normal lives. To this day, nearly 400 adults and children have received cord blood transplants at Memorial Sloan Kettering, of these more than 50% were from non-European ancestry.

The major benefits of a cord blood transplant are:

The cord blood stem cells do not have to be a perfect match and can be transplanted without harm since a baby’s immune system is less developed and therefore less likely to recognize the patient’s body as foreign. The cord blood stem cells can help stop the cancer from returning after the transplant and are also excellent at combating cancer. The patients are also less likely to have the potentially life-threatening complication called graft versus host disease (GVHD).  The stem cells are also immediately available for an urgent transplant, as they are already cryopreserved once a match is found.

Given that there are relatively few stem cells in each unit, and the time for the stem cells to settle and start producing blood cells is longer; a way to overcome this is with a new technology called “expansion”. This technology replicates these blood cells in the laboratory before being used in a transplant. Through clinical trials, Duke University has shown that using expansion shortens the time for the stem cells to settle and start producing blood cells from 28 to 12 days. This is much faster than any other transplant technique available. This product, called Omdidubicel, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in April 2023. This means that many more patients will now have access to the therapy.

Another option to make cord blood transplants available for more people is to do a haplo-identical cord transplant. This involves a combination of donated cord blood stem cells and half-matched (haploidentical) cells from a related half-matched adult donor, typically a parent, child, or sibling. Medication given after the transplant, dampens the immune response among the newly transplanted cells to discourage graft versus host disease.

Another way to make cord blood transplants available to patients that cannot endure high-dose chemotherapy before a transplant is to allow low-dose chemotherapy before the transplant, for it was found in these instances that the transplanted cord blood can recognize and kill cancer cells that were not eliminated by the chemotherapy.

Today, more than 50,000 of these transplants have been performed worldwide.

Cord blood even contains rare stem and progenitor cells for tissues that are different from the blood. Scientists are studying the likelihood that cord blood cells could be used to repair damaged tissues including those in the heart, brain and pancreas. To quote from an article in Diabetologica in 2011: “By implication, it appears that the stem cells in cord blood may hold more promise for the formation of pancreatic beta cells than those in bone marrow”.

With all of these developments in regenerative medicine, it would be a great investment in a family’s future for parents to make the choice to bank their baby’s umbilical cord- and tissue stem cells at birth.