cells from cord blood stem have been shown to give rise to hematopoietic, epithelial, endothelial and tissue neuronal in vitro and in vivo1. As such, the cord blood in medicine regenerative application is under consideration in a number of diseases, including cardiovascular, ophthalmic ,, neurological and orthopedic endocrine diseases.
Two of Insception Lifebank clients participated in a clinical trial to determine the effect of autologous cord blood in patients with cerebral palsy (CP). CP is a motor impairment caused by brain damage. The largest of CP risk factors are prematurity, infection of the deprivation of amniotic fluid and oxygen during pregnancy or birth. Animal studies have shown that cord blood cells injected into rabbits with cerebral palsy condition as may travel to the brain and reduce
symptoms, in some cases preventing them completely.
Based on these results, Dr. Joanne Kurtzberg, director of the Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Program at Duke University, is conducting a clinical trial that involves the infusion of CP pediatric patients with their own blood umbilical cord. The procedure involves a 20-minute intravenous infusion into the back of the hand followed by infusion of saline for 2 hours. The trial will study 40 children, and each child's progress will be followed by MRI and other types of evaluation2.
The results of this trial to date is anecdotal. While some children have had dramatic responses to the cord blood infusion, most of the children had a modest response. Dr. Kurtzberg cautions that further studies are needed to determine the net benefit of cord blood perfusion in CP patients3.
With the trial of CP, Dr. Kurtzberg is involved with a number of other ongoing trials investigating the therapeutic potential of cord blood disorders, including neonatal encephalopathy hypoxicischemic, lysosomal storage diseases and inherited metabolic diseases4.
It is expected that clinical trials and ongoing research being conducted, support the cord blood of demand for future regeneration therapies.
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1 Harris DT Br J Haematol. October 2009; 147 (2) :. 177-84
2 articles.latimes.com/2008/apr/07/health/he-cpalsy7
3 http: //dukemedmag.duke .edu / assets / articles / 18647 / Clinical_update.pdf
4 http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?term=kurtzberg+cord+blood