British scientists claim to be growing “human spare parts” in their London laboratory

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British scientists claim to be the first in the world to be working on growing human body parts at a laboratory at the University College London, and predict they could ultimately make the need for donated organs a thing of the past.  The research team, led by Professor Alexander Seifalian of the university’s  Department of Nanotechnology and Regenerative Medicine, claims it is actually focusing on growing on growing replacement organs and body parts to order, by using a patient’s own cells.

“This is a nose we’re growing for a patient next month. It’s a world first. Nobody has ever grown a nose before,” Prof. Seifalian said, the London Daily Mail reported.  The scientific team explained that when the nose is transferred to the patient, it won’t go directly on the face but will instead be placed inside a balloon inserted beneath the skin on their arm.  After four weeks, during which time skin and blood vessels can grow, the nose will be monitored, then transplanted in the face.

“Other groups have tried to tackle nose replacement with implants but we’ve found they don’t  last,” said Adelola Oseni, a member of the research team.  They migrate, the shape of the nose changes. But ours will hold itself completely, as it’s an entire nose shape made out of polymer.”

“We are the first in the world working on this. We can make a meter every 20 seconds if we need to. However, the full success of these implants needs to be tested with a larger number of patients,” Siefalian said.

For more information go to: http://www.siasat.com/english/news/british-scientistsi-growing-human-spare-parts-laboratory

New Jersey governor signs law aimed at raising awareness about the need to increase organ/tissue donation in the state

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New legislation designating April as “Donate Life Month” in New Jersey and requiring the state Treasury Department to include information on organ and tissue donation with state employee’s paychecks during the month was signed into law by Republican Governor Chris Christie.    The law directs the treasury department to put an donor message on paychecks of state workers and encourages all businesses that receive state contracts to bring the organ donor message to their employees.

Christie, who was born at Newark Beth Israel, signed the bill in an auditorium packed with hospital employees, former patients who had been transplanted at the medical center, and the relatives of individuals whose organs were donated to others.  “Being an organ donor is one of the most profound gifts to give someone else — a chance at a new, healthy life,” Christie told the audience.

Raymond Martinez, chief administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MCV), said he had just finished touring all the state motor vehicle offices to emphasize the importance of the staff to educate the public about becoming a donor.  “That is part of their routine–to ask as of our customers to register,” Martinez said.  Since 2006, when motor vehicle offices began working closely with the New Jersey Sharing Network and Gift of Life, MVC has added 2.5 million people to the donor registry.

New Jersey still ranks 41st nationwide for organ donor participation, said Dr. Mark Zucker, head of the heart transplant program at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center.  “We need to actively educate teenagers, parents and employees on a repeated basis,” Zucker said.

For more information go to: http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/12/0423/2237

any medical implants never tested for safety – Consumer Reports investigation

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A  new investigation by Consumer Reports reveals that while tens of millions of American consumers live with medical devices in their bodies, many of the implants have never been tested for safety and manufacturers are often required to do nothing more than file paperwork and pay a user fee before bringing their products to market.  In fact, because of the broken regulatory system , in such cases the only safety “testing” that occurs is in the bodies of unsuspecting patients.

“While most of us have heard about the safety problems of metal-on-metal hips in the news, these devices are just one illustration of a much larger failure in our regulatory system,” said Nancy Metcalf,  Consumer Reports senior program editor.  The magazine noted that a recent survey they conducted found nearly one in five (17%) American adults has an implanted medical device.

The investigation details the risks associated with four common devices: surgical mesh, Lap-Bands, metal hips, and cardiac devices.  The findings of the two of devices of most interest  transplant field include:

  • (a) Surgical Mesh: No testing – “Tens of thousands of women have been have been implanted with transvaginal mesh for prolapse repair and bladder support.  Despite thousands of reports of adverse events, repeated alarms by women’s health and consumer-health advocates, and multiple lawsuits, these products are still being sold and still classified as “moderate risk” devices.
  • (b) Cardiac Devices: Significant problems – Implantable cadioverter-defibrillators are just one of three types of cardiac devices described by the investigation that have had significant problems.  Since 2009, the FDA has received reports of close to 29,000 deaths or injuries from the devices, by far the most for any device type, according to an analysis of a federal data base.

For more information go to: http://www.news-medical.net/news/20120329/Many-medical-implants-never-tested-for-safety.aspx

First pediatric living donor liver transplant performed in Pakistan

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The first-ever pediatric living donor liver transplant was performed in Islamabad, Pakistan on April 30, 2012.  The surgery was performed on a 12-year-old male child named Mohammad Yasin, at Shifa International Hospital (SIH) The surgical team was led by Dr. Faisal Saud Dar, a renowned liver transplant surgeon who reportedly abandoned a lucrative career in the UK to join SIH last year.

According to The News, Dr. Dar met his  goal of performing the first living donor transplant in Pakistan within 3 years of his joining SIH.  “Since the patient’s blood group did not match with that of any of his first degree relatives, we had to seek the approval of the Human Organ Tissue Transplant Authority to enable the living donor transplant,” Dr. Faisal told the media at a press conference.  Yasin’s donor was a first cousin of the patient and a 23-year-old university student.

“The ground had been readied by Dr. Najmul-Hassan Share, the Director of Liver Transplantation, who had given SIH a three-year program, but a lot of work remained to be done in order to build services to a level where I would feel confident and comfortable enough to have my own child’s liver transplanted Pakistan, should the need ever arise.  Today we have attained that level,” Dr. Faisal predicted.

The Chief Executive Officer of SIH Dr. Manzoor H. Qazi observed efforts will now be made to train other hospitals in the public and private sectors so that liver transplant surgeries can safely and successfully be performed on a larger scale in a country where thousands of people require liver transplants.  “We will establish  the program along international standards. This may be just the first step of the ladder, but it is an achievement for the whole of Pakistan. We can develop systems, we can work as a team, and we can deliver,” Dr. Qazi said.

For more information go to: http://www.thenews.com/pk/PrintEdition.aspx?ID=106216&Cat=6&dt-5/3/2012

Researchers to launch innovative stem cell therapy trial to fight virus that causes AIDS

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Researchers at the University of California Davis Health System close to beginning human clinical trials using an innovative stem cell therapy to fight the virus that causes AIDS.  The safety and efficacy of transplanting anti-HIV stem cells into mice has been demonstrated in mice that represent models of infected patients, according to a paper published in the May Journal of Virology.

The technique, which involves replacing the immune system with stem cells engineered with a triple combination of HIV-resisting genes, proved capable of replicating a normally functioning human immune system by protecting and expanding HIV-resistant immune cells.  The cells thrived and self-renewed even when challenged with an HIV viral load.

To establish immunity in mice whose immune systems paralleled those of patients with HIV, Anderson and his team genetically modified human blood stem cells, which are responsible for producing the various types of immune cells in the body.  The results were considered successful on all accounts.

“We envision this as a potential functional cure for patients infected with HIV, giving them the ability to maintain a normal immune system through genetic resistance,” said Joseph Anderson, MD, lead author and assistant adjunct professor of internal medicine and a stem cell researcher at the UC Davis Institute for Regenerative Cures.  “Ideally, it would be a one-time treatment through which stem cells express HIV-resistant genes, which in term generate an entire HIV-resistant immune system. After we challenged transplanted mice with live HIV, we demonstrated that the cells with HIV-resistant genes were protected from infection and survived in the face of a viral challenge, maintaining normal human CD4 levels.”

For more information go to: http://www.scienceddaily.com/releases/2012/05/120502092042.htm