The Don Margolis Blog

Ethical storm as scientist becomes first man to clone HIMSELF

By FIONA MACRAE - Last updated at 15:25pm on 18th January 2008

 

 

 

Breakthrough: Dr Samuel Wood has successfully cloned himself.

A scientist has achieved a world first... by cloning himself.

Read entire article here:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/technology/technology.html?in_article_id=508887&in_page_id=1965

xxx

Who should be cloned first? Mother Theresa? MLK Jr? Gandhi?

Why do I get the feeling that those most worthy of being cloned would be the last to do it?

And is it just me or is there a really weird resemblance between the good doctor and...

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Good Morning America Features Dr. Richard Burt's Work with Autoimmune Diseases

As recently featured on Good Morning America, Northwestern Memorial Hospital researchers have found that transplanting patients with blood stem cells that originate from their own bone marrow can induce the remission of life-threatening, treatment-resistant lupus. Lupus affects an estimated 1.5 million people, mostly young females. Clinical research trials are also exploring the use of adult stem cells in other autoimmune diseases.

In a study published earlier this year in the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers at Northwestern Memorial reported that the probability of disease-free survival at five years for patients enrolled in the lupus research trial was 50 percent.
The study, which was launched in 1997 when Dr. Burt performed the country's first stem cell transplant to treat lupus, enrolled 50 patients from 20 states and ran through January 2005.

The stem cell transplant process used by Dr. Burt and his team is similar to that done to treat some forms of cancer. The patients' own bone marrow stem cells are harvested from their blood. These cells, which can become different kinds of blood and immune system cells in the body, are then separated from the other blood cells. Next, in a process that usually requires a few weeks of hospitalization, patients immune systems are virtually destroyed through high doses of chemotherapy. Then the cleansed stem cells are returned to the bone marrow to repopulate the marrow and body in an effort to regenerate a healthier immune system.

"This is like re-booting a computer," says Dr. Burt. "The idea is that if you turn back the clock and let the immune system heal itself, the patient should have a chance of ending up without the disease."

Read the full story here:

http://www.nmh.org/nmh/mediarelations/mediaoutputs.htm?cid=1117

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Aastrom Announces First Patient Treatment With Autologous Stem Cell Therapy for Heart Failure

Company Milestone Achieved by Initiating Treatments in Heart Failure Patients With Dilated Cardiomyopathy -- a Severe Chronic Disease of the Heart

http://www.primenewswire.com/newsroom/news.html?d=134361

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Jan. 15, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Aastrom Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq:ASTM), a leading regenerative medicine company, today announced that the first patient has been treated with the Company's autologous stem cell therapy for dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). The milestone marks the first human application of Aastrom's Cardiac Repair Cell (CRC) product to regenerate damaged heart tissue in patients with severely impaired cardiac function...

xxx

Ha! With all due respect to the "milestone" accomplishments of Aamstrom:

Over 40 cardiomyopathy patients treated in Thailand by TheraVitae have had stem cells injected directly in their hearts by thoracic surgeon Dr. Kit Arom (co-founder of the famed Minneapolis Heart Institute). Dr. Kit's "milestone was done in May of 2005. He was taught the procedure by his friend, THE world-pioneer of direct- into-the-heart injections of stem cells, Dr. Amit Patel of the University of Pittsburgh Dr. Patel conducted clinical trials on the procedure HE HIMSELF developed, in Uruguay in 2004. His results were mind-boggling. No one has yet been able to match Dr. Kit's results since he and he alone will accept patients with only weeks to live. The lawyer-dominated US medical "system" sends those no-hope patients to a hospice, not to an operating room.

MASC

Embryonic Stem Cell Idiocy: Blame Clinton, not Bush, Says Bioethicist
By Brandon Keim January 11, 2008 | 11:59:01 AM

http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/01/embryonic-stem.html

THE TRUE IDIOCY IS THAT ANYONE WASTES THEIR TIME ON EMBRYONIC STEM CELLS WHEN ADULT STEM CELLS DO A BETTER JOB WITH A FRACTION OF THE COMPLICATIONS; POLITICAL, ETHICAL AND MEDICAL!

MASC 

Liver¦Longer!
Original Air Date: November 14, 2006
...As one of the world's leading researchers of stem cell activity, Dr. Theise's work has shown that adult stem cells from one part of the body can enable organs and tissue to regenerate in other parts, including the liver. Dr. Theise says scientists hope to harness the potential of this finding into new avenues for therapeutics...

http://www2.oprah.com/xm/moz/200611/moz_20061114.jhtml

Stem Cells May Aid Those At Risk For Heart Failure

Jan 11, 2008 5:50 pm US/Central

http://cbs2chicago.com/health/stem.cell.injections.2.627995.html

‚“Sixty-eight-year-old heart patient James Campbell is hoping to make medical history. He's volunteered to have an injection directly into his heart. It may be a special kind of stem cell, it may be salt water.‚

xxx

Ha! With all due respect to the suffering of Mr. Campbell, the only way that he is going to make medical history during this clinical trial is if no one has ever had salt water injected into their heart before.

Adult stem cells have been injected directly into hearts in Uruguay...

 

since 2004!

 

Adult stem cells have been injected directly into hearts in Thailand...

 

since 2005!

Wake up America! In fact, over 100 of the dying heart patients treated in Thailand by TheraVitae have had stem cells injected directly in their hearts by thoracic surgeon Dr. Kit Arom (co-founder of the famed Minneapolis Heart Institute). About half of those had it done more than 1 1/2 years before James ‚“The Pioneer‚ Campbell. Dr. Kit was taught the procedure by his good friend, THE world-pioneer of direct- into-the-heart injections of stem cells, Dr. Amit Patel of the University of Pittsburgh, and performed it first in May, 2005.

All the same, I hope Mr. Campbell gets the stems cells and not the salt water‚¦seeing as how salt water does nothing for the heart‚¦and adult stem cells have repeatedly and consistently improved heart function, microvascular regrowth, ejection fractions, etc...

...FOR YEARS!

MASC

ON REAGAN STUMPS FOR STEMS

http://www.howardstern.com/rundown.hs?d=1099371600

Ron Reagan Jr came on the show today to announce that there is no "Junior" in his name, it's just Ron Reagan. Once that was cleared up Reagan said his real reason for being here was to ask people to vote for John Kerry. One of Reagan's biggest causes is stem cell research and that is why he wants Kerry in office so badly. Reagan said they are about five years away from discovering amazing break-throughs using stem cells and that could revolutionize the medical world forever. He said that Bush opposes stem cell research on moral grounds, yet allows invitro fertilization to remain legal which destroys just as many embryos as stem cell research would. Basically, Bush is not consistent on his moral argument. Ron said the reason for promoting stem cell research has nothing to do with his late father who passed away from Alzheimer's. He said that he doesn't know if his dad supported stem cell research, but Nancy Reagan thinks he would have so that's good enough for Ron.

http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2007/11/20/embryonic-stem-cells-without-the-embryos/

November 20, 2007, 9:10 am

Embryonic Stem Cells Without the Embryos

Posted by Jacob Goldstein

How do you resolve one of the most pressing dilemmas in biomedical research? Easy: Just make time run backward.

Two teams of scientists are reporting today that they've transformed adult human cells into embryonic stem cells. If the work holds up, it could allow scientists to use the therapeutic potential of embryonic stem cells without the ethical and political roadblocks presented by working on human embryos.

BTW, THESE SCIENTIST WERE ALSO SEEN DRIVING AWAY FROM THEIR LABS IN OIL BELCHING, RUSTY 1968 NOVA'S THAT THEY HAD MIRACULOUSLY TRANSFORMED FROM 2008 FERRARIS.  THE WONDERS OF SCIENCE WILL NEVER END!

MASC

http://www.cbc.ca/cp/HealthScout/080114/6011419AU.html

('Adult' - DG) Stem Cells Modified to Home in Where They're Needed

Published: Monday, January 14, 2008 | 7:23 PM ET

Canadian Press

MONDAY, Jan. 14 (HealthDay News) - U.S. researchers have found a way to modify the surface of stem cells to direct them to where they're needed, an advance that may prove useful in many areas of stem cell therapy.

Researchers at the Biomedical Research Institute at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston modified the surface of human mesenchymal stem cells - a type of adult stem cell that's a precursor of bone-forming osteoblast cells. This modification directed the stem cells through the bloodstream into bone, where they matured into new bone cells...

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080109091102.htm