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Reviews of the Stem Cell World Congress and the Novel Cancer and Immuno Therapeutics Summit
Ron Shane, Ph.D., OMD and Tanner Kim


Part I - Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine World Congress 2011, Jan. 24-25, 2011, San Diego, CA

The Stem Cell World Congress was an excellent conference with many outstanding presentations where the relevancy was more germane to scientific exploration rather than clinical practice. In general, it was discerned that stem cell therapies are still too unpredictable to be utilized for the widespread use in patients. Several speakers pointed out that intravenous injections of high concentrations of mesenchyme stem cells is not only precarious, but could also be very dangerous.

Dr. Mauricio Rojas, Professor, University of Pittsburgh is commencing in the next several months a clinical 1 trial using mesenchyme stem cells to treat COPD as well as cystic fibrosis. He has found that intravenous injections of high concentrations of stem cells will primarily be harbored in the lungs; and thus it is an exquisite protocol for ameliorating virulent fibrous changes to the airways. Dr. Rojas presented physiological evidence that mesenchyme stem cell IV injections does produce propituous remodeling to the airways of the lungs. There is increased conductance through the compromised fibrous airways as a function of this therapeutic protocol. Unfortunately, the stem cell injections are not sustained for more than six months

Dr. Rojas asserted that these compromised patients will have to be re-injected with high concentrations of stem cells at least once or twice a year. He stated that lung transplantation is still quite problematic; and patients in most instances die within five years. Stem cell transplantation to the lungs appears to be a promising, judicious protocol in terms of patient survival and quality of life. Furthermore, Dr. Rojas asserted that stem cell therapy appears to be much more effective than lung transplantation for Obliterative Bronchiolitis. Unfortunately, the effects of this therapy can last less than six months before another injection is required to abate pulmonary fibrosis.

Many medical clinicians have anticipated that stem cell therapies could ameliorate many degenerative molecular morbidities which are associated with the aging process. Currently, the optimism is being replaced by the disinclination that mesenchyme stem cell therapies can be used as a practical protocol to attenuate the devastation involved with the human aging process. Dr. Hakim Djaballah, Director, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center stated that the incubation of mesenchyme stem cells for the purpose of increasing their number likewise induces higher levels of cytotoxicity. In his view, this phenomenon can be deleterious as well as very problematic to the human patient. Most mesenchyme stem cells, when intravenously injected, except for the lungs, do not adhere to damaged tissue systems very long; in fact, their medicinal efficacy is most likely a result of their propitious cytokine signaling.

Many of the speakers were quite optimistic how IPS (Induced Pluripotent Stem) cells can be utilized in the future to treat a wide variety of pathologies. Babak Esmaeli-Azad, President & CEO, DNAmicroarray has developed a methodology for taking highly differentiated stem cells in adult cell lines and inducing them with the employment of small molecules to become once again pluripotent or what is now termed an IPS cell. In his opinion, this process will provide researchers and eventually clinicians the greater potential to treat therapeutically, a myriad of moribund pathologies. Moreover, Dr. Bart Rountree, Assistant Professor, Penn State College of Medicine pointed out that many cancers can now be depicted as having many abhorrently differentiated cell lines. In his view, these distinctive oncogenic cells become problematic as a result of their overexpression of certain genes. Thus, a particular neoplastic tumor may be comprised of many diverse cells with an upregulation of a myriad of problematic genes. Furthermore, a singular modification of specific genes in a certain neoplastic cell would be quite ineffective in terms of nullifying the entire oncogenic tissue. There were many fascinating lectures concerned with new methodologies essential to the advancement of regenerative medicine.

Part II - Novel Cancer and Immuno Therapeutics Summit, Jan. 27-28, 2011, San Diego, CA

The Global Technologies Community Novel Cancer and Immuno Therapeutics Summit was divided into four intriguing sections: Oncology Biomarkers; Cancer Drugs Research & Development; Cytokines & Inflammation; and Ubiquitin Research and Drug Discovery. There were many provocative presentations at this two-day conference in San Diego. Dr. Jeffrey Finer, VP Discovery, Five Prime Therapeutics offered the most interesting conceptual paradigm for clinicians involved with age management medicine. He discussed the concept of protein ligand traps, where pseudo-receptors adhere to the actual cellular receptor. Ligands which normally bind to a specific receptor now become ineffective. Moreover, the pseudo-receptors are not biologically associated with any particular transduction pathway. Thus, there is not any signaling leading to the initiation of transcription. He pointed out that there is an inordinate cross-communication between adjacent receptors in terms of how they initiate signal transduction as well as downstream phosphorylation leading to transcription. A certain ligand may impact a receptor, and when activated, may modulate the transduction activities of many other receptors. Dr. Finer purported that his protein ligand traps prevent the binding of several ligands and also affect the signal transduction of many interrelated receptors.

The focus of his particular discussion was on how this novel therapy could diffuse the activation of oncogenic signal transduction pathways. Furthermore, this same strategy could also be applied to the phenomena of genetic programmed aging.

Protein ligand traps could be utilized to capture particular molecules or cytokines which are involved with the inhibition of many genes. Dr. Finer stated that his company, Five Prime, has a library of protein ligand traps that could be adapted to attenuate the actions of small molecules or cytokines which directly engender the downregulation of many genes which cause virulent tissue remodeling associated with phenotypical human aging.

Dr. Finer suggested that through small molecule matrices, many older cell lines could be propitiously remodeled, where they are again concordant with their former molecular, youthful robustness. Five Prime is also developing vector strategies to modulate cellular post-translational activities. Dr. Jeremy Barton, VP Oncology, Biogen Idec also gave an informative presentation where he demonstrated that antibody complexes can be infused with highly effective cytotoxic molecules in order to more specifically cause lysis of neoplastic cells. He stated that this strategy has been shown to be effective at killing mutant cell lines compared to the overall cytotoxicity of traditional chemotherapy. This company is in clinical 1 trials, and this exciting protocol could replace the deleterious side effects associated with traditional chemotherapy. This conference is worth attending for any clinician who is likewise involved in regenerative medical research.



Ron Shane, Ph.D., OMD is the Director of Optimal Medicine and Health for the Zen Beauty Institute. As a post-doctoral research scholar, he has worked in and studied academic disciplines such as renaissance mysticism literature, psychology, neurobiology, and endocrinology. He is also a sixth-degree black belt and international instructor in Taekwon-Do, as well as an Esoteric Yoga master. Contact Dr. Shane at zenbeautyinstitute@gmail.com or drron73@gmail.com.

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That is great news! I think this is the first time I have seen any mention of phase I clinical for COPD. Thank you for this encouraging news.