Potential Stem Cell Treatment Developed for Lung Disorders

저자：   업로드：2017-08-07  조회수：

    A team of scientists from the University of North Carolina, School of Medicine (UNCSM) and North Carolina State University (NCSU) have developed a promising research towards possible stem cell treatment for several lung conditions, such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and cystic fibrosis (CF). Due to the success of this new research, the investigators have been in discussions with the FDA and are preparing an application for an initial clinical trial in patients with IPF.    

    "This is the first time anyone has generated potentially therapeutic lung stem cells from minimally invasive biopsy specimens," noted co-senior senior study investigator Jason Lobo, M.D., an assistant professor of medicine at UNC and medical director of lung transplant and interstitial lung disease.

    In this new study, published recently in the journal Respiratory Research, in an article entitled “Derivation of Therapeutic Lung Spheroid Cells from Minimally Invasive Transbronchial Pulmonary Biopsies”, the researchers were able to demonstrate that they could harvest lung stem cells from people using a relatively noninvasive doctor's office technique. Consequently, the scientists were then able to multiply the harvested lung cells in the lab to yield enough cells sufficient for human therapy.

    This new evidence was based upon previous work done by these investigators, published in Stem Cells Translational Medicine, where the authors provided clear evidence that using a rodent model of IPF—a chronic, irreversible, and ultimately fatal disease characterized by a progressive decline in lung function—could be successfully treated with the same type of lung stem cell as generated in the current work.

    "We think the properties of these cells make them potentially therapeutic for a wide range of lung fibrosis diseases,” explained co-senior study investigator Ke Cheng, Ph.D., an associate professor in NCSU's department of molecular biomedical sciences and the UNC/NCSU joint department of biomedical engineering.

    Currently, the two FDA-approved drug treatments for IPF reduce symptoms but do not stop the underlying disease process. The only effective treatment is a lung transplant, which carries a high mortality risk and involves the long-term use of immunosuppressive drugs. These diseases of the lung involve the buildup of fibrous, scar-like tissue, typically due to chronic lung inflammation. As this fibrous tissue replaces working lung tissue, the lungs become less able to transfer oxygen to the blood. Patients ult

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