Lifeline Cord Blood

In three monthly injections, researchers transplanted neurally-committed, autologous cord blood derived cells tagged with iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIO) into the lateral cerebral ventricle of a 16-month old child with severe global hypoxic ischemic brain injury.

Marcos De Lima, Ian McNiece, Simon N. Robinson, Mark Munsell, Mary Eapen, Mary Horowitz, Amin Alousi, Rima Saliba, John D. McMannis, Indreshpal Kaur, Partow Kebriaei, Simrit Parmar, Uday Popat, Chitra Hosing, Richard Champlin, Catherine Bollard, Jeffrey J. Molldrem, Roy B. Jones, Yago Nieto, Borje S. AnderssonShow 12 others

BBC Horizon

Home video footage of a boy's progress in hospital after being given his baby sister's cord blood. Brilliant clip from BBC show Life Blood.

 Hector Mayani, John E. Wagner, Hal E. Broxmeyer

    *Pediatrics - Blood/Marrow Transplant

BBC News

A technique which may eventually remove the need for matched bone marrow transplants has been used in humans for the first time. It is hoped that "master cells" taken from umbilical cords could be used on any patient without rejection. The latest advance, published in the journal Nature Medicine, greatly multiplies the tiny number of cells from the cord ready for a transplant...

ORLANDO, Fla. - When Matt Farrow was taken to Paris 29 years ago, umbilical cord blood transplants were an experimental procedure.
His parents took the then-5-year-old to France because that was the only place where they could find a doctor to perform the procedure.
Farrow, who suffered from a rare blood disorder, was the first person to receive a cord-blood transplant, and doctors said there was little chance it would work.
“When my parents got approached to do this experiment, they were given less than 5 percent chance that it would work,” Farrow said.

By Hal Broxmeyer, PhD, and Filippo Milano, MD, PhD

Includes research and results of a variety neurological, blood, and other conditions treated with this oft discarded stem cell source. Stem cells from cord blood are of 'embryonic quality' but do not have the tumor/rejection issues embryonic stem cells do.

 
Researchers at Stanford University are aiming to figure out if umbilical cord blood or the factors found in it could help improve memory and learning in the ageing brain.
As we age, there is a significant decline in our cognitive function. This is one of the key features of neurological disorders. A brain region known as the hippocampus is associated with memory, specifically long-term memory, and learning. The hippocampus is extremely sensitive to the adverse effects of ageing at many levels. Synapses are the narrow spaces between nerve cells that transmit signals from cell to cell, and they show impairment during ageing. Additionally, genes that are activated in response to a wide variety of cellular stimuli are decreased in the ageing brain.

Dr. Kurtzberg pioneered and continues to advance the use of banked umbilical cord blood as a source of stem cells for marrow transplantation in children. Under her leadership, Duke established

Umbilical cord blood can be used as a source of stem cells for people who need transplants, but do not have an appropriately matched family member or unrelated donor.
Duke researchers are investigating the ability of umbilical cord blood to treat a number of diseases, including autism.

(Reuters) - For decades, scientists have been working to develop medical therapies from the body's own stem cells. Promising new treatments are finally moving through clinical trials in conditions ranging from heart disease and inflammation to eye diseases and diabetes.

Family Banking

HOUSTON, Jan. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital and Cord Blood Registry® (CBR) are launching the first FDA-approved, Phase I safety study on the use of cord blood stem cells to treat children with sensorineural hearing loss.

Zosia Chustecka

The first global survey on the use of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) shows that it has become an accepted therapy worldwide, but that it is concentrated in the wealthier nations of the world. Conducted and reported by the Worldwide Network for Blood and Marrow Transplantation, the survey is published in the April 28 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association...