Cutting Edge Juvenile Diabetes Adult Stem Cell Research

Interrupting our discussion on State force and conscience, but this news is just too cool to postpone:

Regenetech, the company that has the license agreement with NASA for the “Intrafuge” that processes cord blood cells and bone marrow cells for the production of embryonic-like and select stem cell treatments, has announced a two year agreement for research with Johns Hopkins, on Type 1, insulin-dependent or Juvenile Diabetes:

Regenetech®, Inc. announces that it has signed a Sponsored Research Agreement (SRA) with Johns Hopkins University in order to work toward a treatment for type 1 diabetes. This is in addition to the research agreements which the Company currently has in place with Texas A&M University and the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. Regenetech is pioneering the development and commercialization of technology which the company believes will enable regenerative therapy with adult stem cells for widespread use.

Regenetech’s agreement with Johns Hopkins University will span over two years, and involves significant funding from the Company. The goal of the research project is to develop a treatment for type 1 diabetes using a patient’s own adult stem cells expanded in Regenetech’s IntrifugeTM Bioreactor. Dr. Mehboob Hussain, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine at Johns Hopkins University, has considerable experience in the treatment of diabetes with stem cells, and is overseeing the research which will use Regenetech’s technology.

University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (UTMB) supplies blood and cord blood stem cells to Regenetech’s laboratories and uses them for their own research purposes as well. In addition, the Company has signed a sub-license agreement with UTMB to use Regenetech’s NASA licensed IntrifugeTM Bioreactor system to expand the stem cells found in the blood. The ultimate goal is to provide low cost, safe doses of adult stem cells for a broad range of diseases and known therapies. The principal investigator from UTMB is Professor Larry A. Denner, who has significant expertise in the identification, expansion and differentiation of primitive cord blood stem cells for pre-clinical studies.

Regenetech also has a SRA with Texas A&M University for the treatment of bone fractures in animals. The research is to demonstrate the clinical efficacy of NASA’s patented time-varying electromagnetic field (TVEMF) technology, which is exclusively licensed to Regenetech. This technology holds rapid healing potential for animals, such as high value race horses and pets, which offer highly significant markets for Regenetech. Once the veterinary treatment protocols have been finalized successfully, it is expected that they will lead the way to human clinical trials.

Regenetech also has a good stem cell “primer,” as well as more information on their ongoing research and patents. They do make a case for embryonic stem cells, saying that adult stem cells haven’t been found for all tissues and organs and that it might take too long in emergency situations to grow the needed tissues, but do not acknowledge that these limitations also exist for embryonic stem cells.

Oh well, no one’s perfect.