StemCell Therapy

Jaap Bosman

Depending on the market, commoditized work can be quite complex. For instance, project finance is one area of specialization for which you need a lot of expert knowledge and experience. The problem is that in a sophisticated market like New York or London, there are just too many good project finance lawyers around who can do the work perfectly well. Hence, in those markets all but the most complex or innovative project finance matters will be considered commoditized.

To better understand lets look at the definition of commoditization in the legal market:

Commoditization is when for a particular matter, the client can choose between multiple lawyers and multiple law firms without sacrificing any aspect of quality. In other words, when from the clients perspective, the process and the final product are the same.

It is important to understand that commoditization is not measured from the law firms perspective. It is the client who decides. It is also important to understand that commoditization is black or white. A certain legal service or product is either commoditized or not. The consequence of commoditization is ultimately, and unavoidably, pressure on price. If everything else is equal and the client has a choice, price will become the decisive factor.

When I discuss the topic of commoditization with lawyers, the first response is always: There might be commoditization in the market, but what I do is 100 percent bespoke.. This phenomenon is called commoditization blindness. The second-most common remark is that the lawyer has a unique and trusted relationship with the clienta relationship that is so strong and special that price alone will never destroy it. Who am I to judge this? So I spoke to a general counsel from a sizable international company and asked him how often he worked with lawyer that he did not like.

The answer did not come as a surprise. Almost all of the lawyers he had worked with during his long career were highly qualified people who did their best to deliver excellent client service and were very pleasant to work with. Basically, all lawyers were equally nice and managed to build a trusted relationship pretty fast. We might think our relationship with our client is unique, but form the clients perspective, even that unique relationship they can get elsewhere.

Commoditization has become a fact of life for law firms, and commoditization will lead to pressure on price. Because of its eroding effect on profit, commoditization might well be the single-most disruptive factor in the legal sector today. To fully grasp the seriousness of this effect, we need to first fully understand a law firms financial model. The basics are simple: revenue minus costs equals profit. Since profit is distributed amongst the partners, there is a direct linear relationship between profit and partner compensation.

The important thing to understand here is the fixed nature of the costs. For a law firm, fixed elements like salaries, rent, insurance and IT can make up to 90 percent of all costs. All of these are invariable in the short term. In most markets, cost will be about 65 percent of budget revenue. So the equation would look like the accompanying chart. As you can see, a 10 percent drop in revenue will result in a 30 percent drop in profit. This leveraged effect is one of the main reasons why commoditization is so dangerous for law firms.

To make things worse and even more threatening, this effect will be amplified by todays increased partner mobility. Loyalty between partners and their firms is at an historic low, and many partners feel free to pick up their books of business and move to another firman event that could easily be triggered by profits declining at the firm they are with. When the most profitable partners leave the firm, taking their books of business, revenue again drops while costs remain the same (salaries, housing, insurance, IT, etc.). Consequently, for the remaining partners, profit will drop even further. This could easily lead to an unstoppable downward spiral with more and more partners leaving.

Eventually this could even lead to the collapse of the firm as we have seen at SJ Berwin, the European branch of King and Wood Mallesons at the end of 2016.

Commoditization will quickly erode profitability. Understanding and accepting the concept of commoditization will help us to understand that in order to maintain our profitability, we will need to adapt our business model. There are several ways to do that. The traditional business model is based on the markup we make on our associates and on time spent. So if a client is billed $3,000 for an associate to complete a task, the profit for the firm will be (based on industry average) $1,000. What if we replace half of what the associate did by a computer, and at the same time charge the client 30 percent less? The calculation will now look more like this: Revenue $2,000, cost $1,000 (only 50 percent time of the associates time spent), profit still $1,000.

Making lawyers more efficient with the help of technology is only one of the solutions. Other measures include reducing the number of equity partners, making costs more flexible, or making the services more valuable though brand building and positioning.

But whatever the solution, it all starts with accepting the situation. We need to stop sticking our heads in the sand and stop believing that what we do is so unique that it cannot be done equally well in every aspect by another lawyer or another firm. As my friend the general counsel said: Typically, all lawyers to a pretty good job and are pleasurable to work with.

Jaap Bosman is a leading strategy consultant, investor and one of the founding partners of TGO Consulting, a boutique consultancy focusing on the legal sector operating from New York, The Hague and Hong Kong. In 2015 he published Death of a Law Firm, recently translated into Chinese. Jaap is a regular speaker on the future of the legal sector.

See the article here:
Do you suffer from 'commoditization blindness'? If others can do your work for less, open your eyes - ABA Journal

The global biotechnology services outsourcing market is expected to reach USD 92.9 billion by 2025

Pharmaceutical industry has been adaptive of the function of outsourcing certain clinical and corporate functions as early as 2002. Among the services outsourced, clinical trial management and contract manufacturing were the forerunners. For instance, Johnson & Johnson was the first pharmaceutical company to outsource its applications development and maintenance (ADM).

In 2015, over USD 50.0 billion was spent on pharmaceutical R&D activities majorly on oncology, diabetes, and autoimmune therapy classes, which is expected to propel the biotechnology services outsourcing market growth over the forecast period.

Shrinking profit margins coupled with rising competition in the market space, and augmenting regulatory burden are other vital impact rendering factors. The pharmaceutical services outsourcing market is expected to register growth at a CAGR of 8.7% during the forecast period. On the other hand, pending immigration legislations in the U.S. may hinder business economics and outsourcing risks.

Pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries in Europe are significantly investing in R&D in the recent year owing to rising demand for advanced medicines. This may be attributed to increasing aging population, incidence of chronic diseases, and communicable diseases.

Further key findings from the study suggest:

Key Topics Covered:

1 Research Methodology

2 Executive Summary

3 Pharmaceutical/Biotechnology Services Outsourcing Market Variables, Trends, & Scope 3.8 Service pricing analysis

4 Pharmaceutical/Biotechnology Services Outsourcing Market: Service Estimates & Trend Analysis 4.1 Pharmaceutical/biotechnology services outsourcing market: Service movement analysis 4.2 Consulting services 4.2.2 Regulatory compliance 4.2.3 Remediation 4.2.4 Quality management 4.2.5 Other 4.3 Auditing & assessment 4.4 Regulatory affairs services 4.4.2 Clinical trial applications & product registration 4.4.3 Regulatory writing & publishing 4.4.4 Legal representation 4.4.5 Other 4.5 Product maintenance services 4.6 Product design & development 4.7 Product testing & validation 4.8 Training & education 4.9 Other services

5 Pharmaceutical/Biotechnology Services Outsourcing Market: Regional Estimates & Trend Analysis

6 Competitive Landscape

For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/5b9f3q/biotechnologyphar

Media Contact:

Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com

For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900

U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-929-billion-biotechnologypharmaceutical-services-outsourcing-market-analysis-by-service-and-segment-forecasts-2014---2025---research-and-markets-300470992.html

SOURCE Research and Markets

http://www.researchandmarkets.com

More here:
Global $92.9 Billion Biotechnology/Pharmaceutical Services Outsourcing Market Analysis, By Service And Segment ... - PR Newswire (press release)

Stephens Inc. AR Acquires 1166 Shares of iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (IBB) The Cerbat Gem iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index logo Stephens Inc. AR raised its stake in shares of iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (NASDAQ:IBB) by 74.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission ... Vetr Inc. Lowers iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (IBB) to HoldSports Perspectives Bellevue Group AG Has $3.52 Million Stake in iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (IBB)Transcript Daily Davidson & Garrard Inc. Has $280000 Stake in iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (IBB)Markets Daily BBNS -Seeking Alpha all 9 news articles »

Read more:
Stephens Inc. AR Acquires 1166 Shares of iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (IBB) - The Cerbat Gem

Rheumatoid arthritis is a long-term condition that causes pain, swelling and stiffness in the joints and mainly affects the hands feet and wrists.

AbbVie Inc, pharmaceutical company, said its oral rheumatoid arthritis drug succeeded in a study on patients who had not adequately responded to standard treatments.

The drug, upadacitinib, is a once-daily pill which is a JAK inhibitor, a type of drug which which block inflammation-causing enzymes called Janus kinases.

Participants in the study were treated for 12 weeks with the drug.

GETTY

Results showed that after 12 weeks of treatment, both doses of upadacitinib (15 mg and 30 mg) met the study's primary endpoints of ACR20 - criteria set by the American College of Rheumatology for medication, and low disease activity.

"We are excited by these promising results for upadacitinib. Selective inhibition of the JAK1 pathway may offer a novel treatment for rheumatoid arthritis patients who do not adequately respond to conventional therapies," said Michael Severino, executive vice president, research and development and chief scientific officer, AbbVie.

"We are especially encouraged by the results on the more stringent measures of efficacy, such as ACR70, low disease activity and clinical remission.

We look forward to seeing the full results from our Phase 3 program.

GETTY

AbbVie's longstanding leadership in the treatment of immune-mediated diseases provides an opportunity to build upon our understanding and develop innovative therapies to address unmet patient needs."

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune condition, which means it is caused by the immune system attacking healthy body tissue - such as the lining go the joints.

It causes joints to become sore and inflamed and damages bones, cartilage, tendons and ligaments.

If the condition isn't treated, these chemicals gradually cause the joint to lose its shape and alignment.

Getty

1 of 12

GETTY

We are excited by these promising results for upadacitinib

Treatment for the condition can help reduce inflammation in the joints, slow damage and relieve pain.

The new treatment has been described as encouraging by Professor Gerd Burmeister, from the department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Charit Berlin.

He said: Achieving the target of low disease activity in nearly half of the patients by 12 weeks and doing so at both high and low dose levels is encouraging.

Current treatment recommendations recognise the importance of this clinical target for patients, as achieving low disease activity has remained an unmet need in rheumatoid arthritis."

View original post here:
New drug could fight rheumatoid arthritis symptoms - 'exciting' results for patients - Express.co.uk

AbbVie Inc said on Wednesday its oral rheumatoid arthritis drug succeeded in a late-stage study on patients who had not adequately responded to standard treatments.

The drug, upadacitinib, is a once-daily pill belonging to a class of drugs known as JAK inhibitors, which block inflammation-causing enzymes called Janus kinases.

Pfizer Inc's Xeljanz is the only U.S.-approved JAK inhibitor for rheumatoid arthritis a chronic inflammatory disease in which the immune system attacks tissues in the joints, affecting more than 23 million people.

AbbVie's success comes almost two months after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration rejected baricitinib, a rival JAK inhibitor developed by Eli Lilly and Co and Incyte Corp.

If approved, upadacitinib could help AbbVie lower its reliance on its flagship rheumatoid arthritis drug Humira the world's top selling medicine that will soon face competition from biosimilars in the United States.

AbbVie's shares were up 1.4 percent at $68.81 on Wednesday afternoon. They earlier hit a session high of $69.32, their highest since August 2015.

In AbbVie's 12-week study on upadacitinib, two doses of the drug were tested against a placebo on patients with moderate-to-severe rheumatoid arthritis.

AbbVie said 64 percent of patients given a 15-milligram dose and 66 percent of patients given a 30-mg dose experienced a 20 percent reduction in symptoms, measured using a commonly used rheumatoid arthritis scale.

The company said only 36 percent of patients given a placebo experienced a comparable drop in symptoms, meaning upadacitinib cleared the trial the first of six testing the drug on patients with various cases of rheumatoid arthritis.

As data from the other trials comes in, upadacitinib might prove to be more effective than Lilly and Incyte's baricitinib, Jefferies analyst Jeffrey Holford said.

Rheumatoid arthritis is currently treated with older drugs such as methotrexate, Pfizer's JAK inhibitor Xeljanz as well as injected biologics such as Amgen Inc's Enbrel and AbbVie's Humira.

Humira generated more than $16 billion in sales last year, but competition is looming. AbbVie is trying to block the launch of an FDA-approved biosimilar, made by Amgen, arguing that its patents on Humira offered protection until at least 2022.

AbbVie is also evaluating upadacitinib for several other autoimmune conditions, including psoriatic arthritis, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

Holford estimated peak sales of $3.5 billion for the drug across all diseases. Pfizer's Xeljanz generated sales of $927 million last year.

(This story corrects paragraph 3 to clarify that Xeljanz is the only U.S.-approved JAK inhibitor.)

(Reporting by Divya Grover in Bengaluru, additional reporting by Natalie Grover; Editing by Sai Sachin Ravikumar and by Savio D'Souza)

GENEVA The number of suspected cholera cases in war-torn Yemen has risen to more than 100,000 since an outbreak began on April 27, the World Health Organization said on Thursday.

BRUSSELS The European Union's top court barred Germany's Dextro Energy on Thursday from making claims about the health benefits of glucose contained in its products, which include Dextrose tablets.

Read the original here:
AbbVie's rheumatoid arthritis drug succeeds in late-stage trial - Reuters

A Philadelphia-based company, Bioquark, has revealed it is working on a new stem cell therapy that will attempt to revive brain-dead people. The first test is scheduled to begin this year in an undisclosed location in Latin America, the Daily Mail reported.

Ira Pastor, CEO of Bioquarkrevealed his company has developed a series of injections that are capable of rebooting the human brain. He also mentioned that the company aims to test these injections on humans this year, the report added.

Pastor further said his company does not plan to conduct thesetests on animals.

Read:How Do You Know When Someone Is Dead? Experts Question Guidelines To Determine Death

At first, Pastor along with his co-worker Himanshu Bansal had planned to conduct this experiment in a remote part of India. For this, they had gathered 20 subjects. But, before they couldstart with their experiment,it was blocked by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) without stating a proper reason. The pair was asked to conduct their research elsewhere, after which they decided to go ahead with their research in Latin America, the report stated.

In the first phase of the experiment named First In Human Neuro-Regeneration & Neuro-Reanimation, scientists will first collect stem cells from the subjects blood or fat and then inject it back into their body.

The next step would be injecting a dose of peptides into the subjects spinal cord. A peptide is a compound consisting of two or more amino acids linked in a chain. Molecules small enough to be synthesized from the constituent amino acids are, by convention, called peptides.

According to scientists, this would speed up the growth of new neurons in clinically brain-dead patients.

The subject would then be kept under observation for a period of 15 days during which they will be subjected to nerve stimulation involving laser technology and median nerve stimulation. Nerve stimulation is the process of stimulating nerves for therapeutic purposes using electric current produced by a device.

During this simulation process, the subject will constantly be monitored using MRI scans for any signs of life.

The mission of the Project is to focus on clinical research in the state of brain death, or irreversible coma, in subjects who have recently met the Uniform Determination of Death Act criteria, but who are still on cardiopulmonary or trophic support a classification in many countries around the world known as a "living cadaver, Pastor had said last year.

However, Pastor's idea was not welcomed by all medical experts. There is no way this technique could work on someone who is brain-dead. The technique relies on there being a functional brain stem one of the structures that most motor neurons go through before connecting with the cortex proper, Dr. Ed Cooper, who has studied and authored several studies on brain stimulation, told Stat News.

If there's no functional brain stem, then it can't work, he further said.

Meanwhile, several questions related to the research have surfaced, one of them being how do researchers complete paperwork for the experiment when the subject is clinically dead? Or should families of the subjects hope for an incredibly long-shot cure? Although the answers to these questions are far off, Pastorsaid:While the complete recovery in such patients is indeed a long term vision of ours and a possibility that we foresee with continued work along this path, it is not the core focus or primary endpoint of this first protocol.

Continue reading here:
Can We Cheat Death? US Firm Aims To Resurrect Brain-Dead ... - International Business Times

Thy dead shall live, my dead bodies shall ariseawake and sing, ye that dwell in the dustfor Thy dew is as the dew of light, and the earth shall bring to life the shades. Isaiah 26:19 (The Israel Bible)

(Shutterstock)

A biomedical company is set to begin experiments using stem cells to revive brain dead patients in a manner that troubles theologians, who question whether this attempt to preempt the Messianic resurrection of the dead should be permitted. One prominent rabbi takes it even further, pointing out the clear and obvious flaw that destines the project to failure.

Bioquark, a biomedical startup based in Philadelphia, recently announced that they will begin experiments later this year on patients who have been declared clinically brain dead. The trial will involve a multi-pronged approach, involving injecting stem cells and peptides into the spinal cords, electrical nerve stimulation, and laser therapy. The researchers hope this will grow new neurons and spur them to connect to each other, bringing the brain back to life.

If they succeed, they will be violating a sacred Biblical tenet, Rabbi Moshe Avraham Halperin from the Science and Technology Torah Law Institute, which investigates modern technology within a religious Jewish framework, told Breaking Israel News.

If they are able to revive a person from total brain death, it will be considered techiyat hamaytim (resurrection of the dead), said Rabbi Halperin. Torah law puts limits on man, forbidding him from some areas which are strictly divine. Reviving the dead is one of them.

The study is not only problematic for theologians. It raises many issues in medical ethics. A similar experiment led by Bioquark in India in 2016 was not cleared by Indias Drug Controller General. Amar Jesani, editor of the Indian Journal of Medical Ethics in Mumbai, cautioned that even partial success would traumatize families that had come to terms with a situation they believed irreversible. In point of fact, no families permitted their loved ones to be part of the experiment.

Bioquark plans to try again later this year in an undisclosed location in Latin America. If successful, the experiment would be a medical breakthrough bordering on a miracle. A survey published in 2010 that described cases covering 13 years found that there has never been a single case of a person regaining brain function after all the criteria determining full brain death have been met.

This is like using genetics to create a new form of life, said Rabbi Halperin. There are realms that are strictly divine. Resurrection of the dead is clearly possible. It is definitely going to happen after the Messiah, but it restricted to God.

Rabbi Yosef Berger,rabbi of King Davids Tomb on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, stated that not only was the experiment forbidden, but it had no chance of success. He cited the 13 Principles of Faith established by Rabbi Moses ben Maimon, the prominent 12th century Torah authority known by the acronym Rambam. The last of his principles states, I believe by complete faith that there will be a resurrection of the dead at the time that will be pleasing before the Creator.

The Rambam states that we must believe that the resurrection of the dead will happen when it is Gods will for it to take place and at no other time, Rabbi Berger stressed to Breaking Israel News. Not only does this effort by scientists go against this principle of faith, but we know that true resurrection can only happen by Divine will.

Resurrection of the dead is described in depth, and it is proof of Gods rule over the physical world. But it is also stated that before the Messiah, there is no return from the grave.

He added that the phenomenon of death will vanish after the resurrection of the dead, citing the book of Daniel.

And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to reproaches and everlasting abhorrence. Daniel 12:2

The scientists believe they are masters over life and death, said Rabbi Berger. Just as they cannot create eternal life, they will find that they are not masters over death. For that, there is only One.

Read the original:
Is New Scientific Trial to Revive the Dead a Threat to God's Final Resurrection of Believers? - Breaking Israel News

Over time, high blood sugar levels from diabetes lead to damage of the retina, the layer on the back of the eye that captures images and sends them as nerve signals to the brain. Whether diabetic retinopathy develops depends in part on how high blood sugar levels have been and how long they have been above a target range. Other things that may increase your risk for diabetic retinopathy include high blood pressure, pregnancy, a family history of the condition, kidney disease, high cholesterol, and whether you smoke.

The early stages of retinal damage are called nonproliferative retinopathy. First, tiny blood vessels called capillaries in the retina develop weakened areas in their walls called microaneurysms. When red blood cells escape through these weakened walls, tiny amounts of bleeding (hemorrhages) become visible when the retina is viewed through an instrument called an ophthalmoscope. To clearly see your retina, the ophthalmologist will enlarge (dilate) your pupils (which serve as a window to the back of your eye) and may also use a special dye to help identify blood vessels that may be leaking.

Fluid from the blood also escapes, leading to yellowish "hard exudates." This type of damage does not cause problems with vision unless some of the leaking fluid is near the macula. (The macula is the area of the retina that is responsible for central vision.) An ophthalmologist who specializes in the treatment of retinal problems will attempt to stop blood leakage by using a laser in a process called photocoagulation. By using an appropriately selected laser, your ophthalmologist may seal the small blood vessels that can leak when a person has nonproliferative and proliferative retinopathy. More recently, ophthalmologists have been using injectable medicines to treat retinal leakage.

If fluid leaks out near the macula, it can disrupt vision. This is called macular edema. As retinopathy becomes more severe, parts of the abnormal capillaries can become closed off. This kills parts of the retina that the capillaries previously supplied with blood. These tiny damaged parts of the retina are called "cotton wool" spots and can be seen using an ophthalmoscope.

The later stages of retinal injury are called proliferative retinopathy, because new fragile blood vessels grow to supply the damaged areas of the retina. These new blood vessels can bleed into the vitreous gel, the gel-filled area in front of the retina. Over time, scar tissue that forms from bleeding can cause the retina to detach from the wall of the eye (retinal detachment) and cause loss of vision.

Severe proliferative retinopathy may be treated with laser surgery in order to save vision. Your eye doctor may use more aggressive laser therapy, called scatter (pan-retinal) photocoagulation. This process is more thorough than that used in localized photocoagulation. And it may require more individual treatments. But it allows your doctor to minimize the growth of new blood vessels across the back of your retina. Severe proliferative retinopathy may also be treated with medicines that slow the growth of abnormal blood vessels in the retina. The growth of these vessels is triggered by a protein called vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Anti-VEGF medicines, such as ranibizumab (Lucentis), block the effects of VEGF.

Laser treatments may not always work in treating proliferative retinopathy. If you have retinal detachment or hemorrhages that cannot be repaired, your retinal specialist will need to use a surgical technique to try to restore your vision. This surgical technique, called pars plana vitrectomy, attempts to repair your retina and reduce hemorrhaging. Like many surgical techniques, it has several risks and is much more likely to damage your eye than laser surgery.

People who have diabetes are also at risk for other problems, such as cataracts and glaucoma, that damage vision. They are also at risk for a severe form of glaucoma called neovascular glaucoma. Cataracts are frequently caused by a lifetime of sun exposure, and diabetes speeds up their formation.

The following table outlines the major causes of blindness in people who have diabetes.

Condition

How it causes vision loss

Preventive measures

If you notice problems with your vision, you should immediately seek medical evaluation by an ophthalmologist. Regular eye exams are meant to detect any retinopathy at the nonproliferative stage, where it may still be treated with a good chance of success.

If nonproliferative retinopathy is not detected and treated early, it may progress to proliferative retinopathy. During proliferative retinopathy, your body tries to correct the microaneurysms. To replace blood vessels that have broken or leaked, new blood vessels begin to form. These blood vessels are fragile and may break easily, causing bleeding into the middle of the eye and clouding vision. They also form scar tissue that can pull on the retina and cause the retina to detach from the wall of the eye.

With aggressive management of your condition-keeping your blood sugar in your target range and controlling blood pressure-along with regular screening of your vision, you may be able to prevent or delay blindness.

WebMD Medical Reference from Healthwise

Follow this link:
How Diabetes Causes Blindness-Topic Overview - WebMD

CIRM funds many projects seeking to better understand diseases of blindness and to translate those discoveries into new therapies.

Nearly a million Americans are blind, with another 2.4 million suffering significant visual impairment. While there are several causes of blindness, the leading cause of all visual impairment is age-related macular degeneration, which affects 1.7 million Americans.

Californias stem cell agency funds research into potential therapies for three of the causes of blindness. All the research teams are seeking to use various forms of stem cells to rescue or replace cells in the eye damaged or threatened by the diseases. Several groups are working on ways to restore vision for people with age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Other projects are looking to preserve vision in patients with retinitis pigmentosa, and to restore clarity to the surface of eyes impacted by corneal disease.

In AMD the layer of cells that support the photoreceptors is destroyed. Without this support system, the photoreceptors, the cells that actually allow us to sense light start to malfunction. CIRM-funded teams are looking at various methods of replacing this layer of support cells called RPE (retinal pigment epithelial) cells. Some are using embryonic stem cells as a starting point to generate new RPE cells. Others are using stem cells obtained by reprogramming adult cells to be like embryonic cells, which could potentially come from the patients themselves.

Retinitis pigmentosa, an inherited and progressive vision loss that leaves most patients legally blind by mid-life, directly destroys the photoreceptors. CIRM-funded researchers are seeking to use stem cells to rescue the receptors from further damage and potentially replace them with new ones.

The cornea, the outer surface of the eye, is constantly refreshed by stem cells that reside in neighboring tissue. But some people just dont have enough of these stem cells, called Limbal stem cells, to make enough new cornea cells. CIRM-funded researcher are trying to correct this condition, limbal stem cell deficiency, by retrieving the few existing limbal stem cells, and using various techniques to expand them in the laboratory until there are enough cells to rebuild a healthy cornea.

Some projects we fund are trying to take promising therapies out of the laboratory and closer to being tested in people. These Disease Team Awards encourage the creation of teams that have both the scientific knowledge and business skills needed to produce therapies that can get approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to be tested in people. In some cases, these awards also fund the early phase clinical trials to show that they are safe to use and, in some cases, show some signs of being effective.

This team is using embryonic stem cells to produce the support cells, or RPE cells, needed to replace those lost in AMD. Because these cells exist in a thin sheet in the back of the eye, they are assembling these sheets in the lab by growing the RPE cells on synthetic scaffolds. These sheets are then surgically implanted into the eye. They are testing the human embryonic stem cell-derived RPE cells in a Phase 1/2a clinical trial to treat the advanced dry form of AMD.

For retinitis pigmentosa, the team is using donor tissue to isolate cells that are part way down the path from neural stem cells to adult eye tissue. These retinal progenitor cells are grown in large quantities in the lab and then injected into the eye. The team suggests the cells could help in two ways. They may be able to protect the photoreceptors not yet damaged by the disease, and they may be able to form new photoreceptors to replace those already lost. The team is testing the safety of transplantinghuman retinal progenitor cells into patients with RP in a phase 1/2 clinical trial.

The same team from UC Irvine is now conducting a Phase 2b clinical trial for retinitis pigmentosa using the same stem cell derived retinal progenitor celltherapy. The trial, which is sponsored by the company jCyte, will test the treatment in a larger patient population to determine whether the treatment is effective at restoring some vision.After finishing patient enrollment, the team willconductpatient follow up studies and collectof all clinical outcome measures.

Total:

Find Out More: Stem Cell FAQ | Stem Cell Videos | What We Fund

See the article here:
Blindness Fact Sheet | California's Stem Cell Agency

The Hindu

Saving three-month-old infant from blindness The Hindu Like blood pressure, every eye has intraocular pressure. In glaucoma, the watery fluid called aqueous humour flows into the eye, but does not exit. This increases the eye pressure and leads to blindness, says S.A. Hussain Naqvi, head of medical ... 2-month-old baby undergoes successful eye surgeryThe Hans India 2-month-old treated for rare glaucomaTimes of India all 4 news articles »

See the article here:
Saving three-month-old infant from blindness - The Hindu

Fox - credit gingiber

Humanity and compassion have been on the forefront of peoples minds in recent weeks, and even demonstrated by our politicians.

What a shame, though, that there cant be more compassion shown towards the animal kingdom at a time when the enjoyment of inflicting pain and death on fellow creatures is as popular as ever.

And it even featured in the Conservative manifesto.

RELATED CONTENT

Nearly one in three satellite tagged golden eagles in Scotland died in suspicious circumstances, finds SNH

MSPs to consider banning wild animals from travelling circuses

Theresa May tells voters she is in favour of fox hunting

The UK Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary, Andrea Leadsom, who self-identifies as an animal lover, recently tweeted: Fully committed to protecting rare species in our Conservative manifesto. Saving iconic and hugely loved elephant is vital.

This is a ludicrous assessment of a manifesto which dropped a commitment to a ban on the sale of ivory.

Its a mystifying move given that an elephant is killed by poachers every 25 minutes, as the march towards extinction gathers apace; and it is far, far too late for politicians to be worrying about their popularity among the crucial wealthy antique-dealer electorate.

Perhaps less surprising is the indication that restrictions on fox hunting will be repealed.

Leadsom has said preventing hunters in traditional dress driving a pack of dogs through the countryside to chase then rip apart a fox has not proven to be in the interests of animal welfare whatsoever.

And Theresa May told some factory workers she was in favour of hunting.

Trying to explain fox hunting to my seven-year-old daughter is a difficult process, because while children can be very cruel, they also understand cruelty should not be fun.

The hunting lobby argues that people who oppose it the majority of people fail to understand the longstanding traditions and pursuits of countryside life, that people who live in cities over-sentimentalise animals.

Even leaving aside the class element to that, these arguments fall flat because they are condescending and fickle. However you dress it up, cruelty is cruelty. A culture of cruelty. Even a seven-year-old can understand that.

Compassion is not ignorant. Finding blood sport abhorrent is not complicated, it is principled. Its human.

And blood sport blindness is not exclusively a Tory pastime. The Scottish Government is considering relaxing the ban on amputating puppies tails introduced in 2007.

New exemptions would apply to just two breeds and only if they are likely to be used as a working dog, but the British Veterinary Association told MSPs that any concession would be a retrograde step for Scotland when prior to now it has always been cited as a key example of the Scottish lead on animal welfare.

Arguments for introducing exemptions come from another community of enthusiastic blood sport fanatics. Evidence shows gun dogs who work, particularly Spaniels, are at risk of injury if they have a tail.

But instead of examining the bloodthirsty practice that causes such injuries to these dogs, the answer instead is to mutilate the animal when they are born, and without any pain relief. The fact a dog uses its tail for balance and communication is inconvenient in such a job, apparently.

If your dog is suffering life-threatening injuries during your pursuit of the murder of birds, just maybe that isnt the fault of its tail.

Add in the corpses of driven grouse and the death of a number of inconvenient birds of prey - one in three golden eagles - as well as an annual cull of meddlesome mountain hares, and countryside pursuits is racking up quite the body count.

Will animal rights legislation ever recognise the culpability of the human in the equation?

We are supposed to be special because we have reason and rational thought. Indeed, Scotland is famous for both. But theres really nothing reasonable or rational about cruelty.

Time for some humanity and compassion in the face of barbarism.

Read the rest here:
Blood sport blindness afflicts our politicians - Holyrood.com

Puma Biotechnology (NYSE:PBYI) is inching closer to its transformation from a research and development (or R&D) biopharmaceutical company to a full-fledged commercial organization. This company which has in-licensed development and commercialization rights for oral and intravenous formulations of irreversible tyrosine kinase inhibitor or TKI, neratinib, and also another irreversible TKI, PB357, achieved the first major milestone for 2017 on May 24, 2017. On this day, FDA's Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee or ODAC recommended approval for Nerlynx (neratinib) as extended adjuvant therapy for patients suffering with early stage, human epidermal growth factor receptor type 2 - positive or HER2-positive breast cancer after being previously treated with surgery and adjuvant treatment with Roche Holdings' (OTCQX:RHHBY) Herceptin (trastuzumab).

Besides this indication, Puma Biotechnology expects neratinib to demonstrate efficacy in other cancers such a non small cell lung cancer and tumors related to expression or over-mutation in HER2 such as HER2-positive cancer, HER-2 cancer that has metastasized to brain, HER2-positive neoadjuvant breast cancer.

Hence, there is high probability that Neratinib can prove to be a blockbuster drug for Puma Biotechnology. I believe this is a solid reason for considering the company as a favorable investment opportunity in 2017. In this article, I will explain the key drivers that make Puma Biotechnology a compelling investment opportunity in 2017.

Extended adjuvant setting is a larger underserved market segment

Currently, the target breast cancer market in extended adjuvant setting comprises around 36,000 patients in USA and 34,000 in EU. In 2015, Herceptin's sales in adjuvant indication were around $4.5 billion to $5.0 billion. All these patients form a target market for neratinib in the following year. Currently, letrozole is the only FDA approved therapy in extended adjuvant setting.

Puma Biotechnology expects to launch Neratinib as extended adjuvant breast cancer therapy in 2017

In July 2016, Puma Biotechnology filed new drug application or NDA with FDA, seeking approval for neratinib in extended adjuvant setting for early stage HER2-overexpressed/amplified breast cancer. The regulatory agency accepted the application in September 2016.

Further, the European Medicines Agency or EMA also validated Puma's application for neratinib in extended adjuvant setting in August 2016. On advice of EMA, in March 2017, the company revised its label to only include those early stage HER2+ breast cancer patients who had been previously treated for up to 1 year with adjuvant herceptin. Puma Biotechnology initiated a managed access program for neratinib in this indication in Q4 2016 and an expanded access program in Q1 2017.

While all these have been major milestones for the company in the past, the upcoming milestone will be FDA approval for orally administered neratinib in extended adjuvant setting, anticipated in 3Q 2017.

This approval is expected to be mainly based on results obtained from phase 3 trial, ExteNET, in which neratinib managed to hit its primary endpoints. In the intent-to-treat or ITT population, the 2-year disease free survival or DFS in neratinib arm was seen to be 93.9% while that in the placebo arm was 91.6%, which implies absolute improvement of 2.4%. In ITT population, there has been a 2.5% absolute improvement in 5-year DFS for neratinib arm as compared to placebo arm.

In case of patients confirmed with HER+ breast cancer, neratinib demonstrated 2-year DFS of 94.7%, while it was only 90.6% for the placebo arm. While this is an absolute improvement of 4.1%, the 5-year DFS with neratinib in HER+ patients is slightly higher at 4.4%.

Data from ExteNET trial has also shown 33% reduction in risk of disease recurrence for patients in neratinib arm as compared to those in placebo arm in ITT population. Further, for confirmed HER+ early stage breast cancer patients, the reduction in risk of disease recurrence for those on neratinib therapy in extended adjuvant setting is as high as 49%.

All these statistics are in line with those seen for the already approved extended adjuvant breast cancer drug, letrozole, as well as data obtained from development trials for hormone receptor positive or HR+ adjuvant breast cancer therapies, Pfizer's (NYSE:PFE) Aromasin and AstraZeneca's (NYSE:AZN) Arimidex. This implies that there are high chances for neratinib to secure FDA approval in extended adjuvant setting.

Neratinib has demonstrated higher benefit as adjuvant therapy in HR+ breast cancer patients

For HR+ breast cancer patients in ExteNET trial, the adjuvant therapy of neratinib demonstrated DFS rate of 95.4%, while the placebo arm showed DFS of 91.2%. This implied an absolute benefit of 4.2% after 2 years.

For 5-year period, the DFS with neratinib in HR+ patients was 91.7% while that in placebo arm was 86.9%, implying 4.8% absolute benefit.

Neratinib has demonstrated superior results in HR+ patients mainly on account of dual suppression of the crosstalk between estrogen receptor-positive or ER+ and HER+. Since ER+ breast cancer patients in the ExteNET trial were already on background endocrine therapy, it helped suppress the ER while neratinib suppressed both EGFR and HER2. This dual suppression has been seen only in neratinib and not in trials of other breast cancer drugs such Roche Holdings Herceptin and Novartis' (NYSE:NVS) Tykerb.

In case of HR- patients, however, ExteNET trial demonstrated improvement with neratinib between months 0 to 12 as compared to placebo. This was essentially when the patients were being administered the drug. However, the benefit in DFS in the neratinib arm over placebo arm seemed to become statistically insignificant over 5 year horizon.

Puma Biotechnology has also introduced loperamide prophylaxis therapy to prevent diarrhea resulting from neratinib.

Prior to Puma Biotechnology in-licensing Neratinib, it was being tested on 3,000 patients in various trials. It was seen that these patients suffered from grade 3 or grade 4 diarrhea in the first 28 days after initiating therapy. However, this could be treated with antidiarrheal drug, loperamide.

Puma Biotechnology is instead focusing on preventing this side-effect of neratinib using loperamide prophylaxis. Data from multiple studies has shown that the rate of grade 3 diarrhea reduced from the range of 30% to 53% in case of no loperamide prophylaxis to the range of 0% to 17% with loperamide prophylaxis. The total duration of diarrhea also dropped from 14 days to 2 days with loperamide prophylaxis.

Since ExteNET trial did not involve any anti-diarrheal prophylaxis therapy, Puma Biotechnology separately studied the impact of loperamide prophylaxis alone and in combination with other anti-inflammatory agents in extended adjuvant setting in early stage HER2+ breast cancer patients in another phase 2 trial, CONTROL. Data from this trial showed that while rate of grade 3 diarrhea in ExteNET trial was 39.8%, loperamide prophylaxis reduced the rate to 30.7%, loperamide and budesonide prophylaxis to 23.4%, and loperamide and colestipol to 11.5%.

Further, while the duration of diarrhea in ExteNET trial was 59 days, the various prophylaxis regimens in the CONTROL trial have brought the down to the range of 8 to 12 days. Episodes of diarrhea were also brought down from 8 in ExteNET trial to the range of 2 to 4 in CONTROL trial.

The CONTROL trial has also shown improvement in tolerability for the drug, which was being mainly affected due to diarrhea.

All this shows that the major side-effect of Neratinib, diarrhea, is easily manageable with effective prophylaxis therapy. Further, it is only seen that grade 3 diarrhea was witnessed by patients only in first cycle or first 28 days of neratinib therapy.

The company's cash reserves can sustain its operations through mid-2018

At the end of Q1 2017, Puma Biotechnology had $194 million worth cash reserves on its balance sheet. The company's cash burn rate in Q1 2017 was $36.0 million. This can be considered representative for all the quarters in 2017, as Puma has been highly involved in preparing for regulatory approval and commercial launch of neratinib. Based on these assumptions, the company can sustain its business operations upto the first half of 2018, without depending on external funding.

Further, with a solid oncology drug in the pipeline, Puma Biotechnology will also not find it difficult to raise capital from the public, either as equity or debt. Hence, the company seems to be at a comfortable position.

Investors should not ignore certain company-specific risks

Today, Puma Biotechnology is equivalent to neratinib. In absence of any commercial product or advanced stage research product, Puma Biotechnology is excessively dependent on the successful commercial launch of Neratinib. Since the product has not yet received FDA approval for even a single indication, this may prove to be too risky investment for investors with average risk appetite.

Further, the company also does not have proven marketing and distribution capabilities. In absence of a strong commercial partner, Puma Biotechnology may land up being commercially unsuccessful, despite securing FDA approval for neratinib.

Investors should consider these major risk factors while considering Puma Biotechnology as an opportunity in 2017.

Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.

I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Editor's Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major U.S. exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.

Read the original:
Puma Biotechnology's Neratinib Set To Target Extended Adjuvant Opportunity - Seeking Alpha

The American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting passed without much of a stir, writes Charley Grant in the WSJ. Naturally, there were exceptions with individual companies, but the biotech sector as a whole barely budged throughout the major conference.

So what? The S&P Biotechnology Select Industry Index isup 19%in 2017, and there are treatment categories outside of oncology. But, says Grant, the majority of stocks in that index aren't profitable, and are thus dependent on things like ASCO to rev up sentiment. In the bull market of 2013-15, ASCO was enough to send the sector sharply higher.

With that catalyst not working this year, all biotech may have to look forward to are blockbuster drug launches, and there's not much going on there - just three drugs are set to come to market this year that are expected to top $2B in annual sales by 2022.

ETFs: IBB, XBI, LABU, BBH, FBT, HQL, PBE, LABD, BBC, BBP, UBIO, ZBIO, LABS

Read more:
WSJ's Grant: In biotech, no news is bad news - Seeking Alpha

AbbVie Inc said on Wednesday its oral rheumatoid arthritis drug succeeded in a late-stage study on patients who had not adequately responded to standard treatments.

The drug, upadacitinib, is a once-daily pill belonging to a class of drugs known as JAK inhibitors, which block inflammation-causing enzymes called Janus kinases.

Pfizer Inc's Xeljanz is the only U.S.-approved JAK inhibitor for rheumatoid arthritis a chronic inflammatory disease in which the immune system attacks tissues in the joints, affecting more than 23 million people.

AbbVie's success comes almost two months after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration rejected baricitinib, a rival JAK inhibitor developed by Eli Lilly and Co and Incyte Corp.

If approved, upadacitinib could help AbbVie lower its reliance on its flagship rheumatoid arthritis drug Humira the world's top selling medicine that will soon face competition from biosimilars in the United States.

AbbVie's shares were up 1.4 percent at $68.81 on Wednesday afternoon. They earlier hit a session high of $69.32, their highest since August 2015.

In AbbVie's 12-week study on upadacitinib, two doses of the drug were tested against a placebo on patients with moderate-to-severe rheumatoid arthritis.

AbbVie said 64 percent of patients given a 15-milligram dose and 66 percent of patients given a 30-mg dose experienced a 20 percent reduction in symptoms, measured using a commonly used rheumatoid arthritis scale.

The company said only 36 percent of patients given a placebo experienced a comparable drop in symptoms, meaning upadacitinib cleared the trial the first of six testing the drug on patients with various cases of rheumatoid arthritis.

As data from the other trials comes in, upadacitinib might prove to be more effective than Lilly and Incyte's baricitinib, Jefferies analyst Jeffrey Holford said.

Rheumatoid arthritis is currently treated with older drugs such as methotrexate, Pfizer's JAK inhibitor Xeljanz as well as injected biologics such as Amgen Inc's Enbrel and AbbVie's Humira.

Humira generated more than $16 billion in sales last year, but competition is looming. AbbVie is trying to block the launch of an FDA-approved biosimilar, made by Amgen, arguing that its patents on Humira offered protection until at least 2022.

AbbVie is also evaluating upadacitinib for several other autoimmune conditions, including psoriatic arthritis, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

Holford estimated peak sales of $3.5 billion for the drug across all diseases. Pfizer's Xeljanz generated sales of $927 million last year.

(This story corrects paragraph 3 to clarify that Xeljanz is the only U.S.-approved JAK inhibitor.)

(Reporting by Divya Grover in Bengaluru, additional reporting by Natalie Grover; Editing by Sai Sachin Ravikumar and by Savio D'Souza)

VIENTIANE Dozens of fertility clinics have mushroomed in land-locked Laos after scandals over commercial surrogacy have spurred wealthier southeast Asian neighbors to ban the controversial procedure since 2015.

ZURICH Novartis on Wednesday touted new data from its T-cell therapy CTL019, saying it is on a par with results of experimental molecules from Kite Pharma and Juno Therapeutics that also target aggressive blood cancers.

Here is the original post:
AbbVie's rheumatoid arthritis drug succeeds in trial - Reuters

GETTY

Osteoarthritis affects around 4 million people in the UK every year.

When a joint develops osteoarthritis, some of the cartilage covering the ends of the bones gradually roughens and becomes thin, and the bone underneath thickens.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a serious and disabling autoimmune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys healthy body tissue.

It affects more than 690,000 people in the UK, of which over 500,000 are women and around three-quarters are of working age.

GETTY

However there is one form of arthritis - which occurs most commonly in the knees and hips.

Septic arthritis is the inflammation of a joint which is caused by a bacterial infection.

It is also known as bacterial arthritis, or even infections arthritis.

Any joint can be affected by the condition but it occurs most frequently in the knees and hips. However there is one form of arthritis - which occurs most commonly in the knees and hips.

GETTY

Septic arthritis is the inflammation of a joint which is caused by a bacterial infection.

It is also known as bacterial arthritis, or even infections arthritis.

Any joint can be affected by the condition but it occurs most frequently in the knees and hips. There are number of factors which can increase the risk of developing the condition, including having joint surgery, such as a knee replacement or hip replacement, having a bacterial infection somewhere else in your body and having a long term condition.

Having rheumatoid arthritis can increase the risk of developing the condition.

Experts also warn that using injected drugs, or medication which suppresses the immune system can also be a factor.

Getty

1 of 12

Septic arthritis typically causes severe pain

Invasive bacterial infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogenes bacteria can be life-threatening and fatal, causing sepsis - blood poisoning, pneumonia and Toxic Shock Syndrome.

The bacteria, which normally lives harmlessly on the skin, nose or mouth but can invade the bodys bloodstream and release poisonous toxins.

Toxins can damage tissue skin and organs and can disturb vital organ functions.

If doctors suspect pain could be a symptom of septic arthritis, GPs are likely to refer patients to A&E, where they will give patients a blood test.

The condition is usually treated with antibiotics and often fluid will have to be drained from one of the affected joints.

More here:
Arthritis symptoms - painful joints could be a sign of THIS life-threatening condition - Express.co.uk

Estimated read time

1m 24s

A golf tournament happening on the summer solstice is raising money to benefit the nonprofit Arthritis Foundation Alaska.

There are about 125,000 peoplewith arthritis living in Alaska, including 900 children, accordingto the Arthritis Foundation.

It was real obvious to me that they were the underdog when it came to charities, said Kevin Turkington, owner of Midnight Sun Homecare, a sponsor of the Midnight Sun Charity Golf Classic. We have kind of become family in this effort to help people understand that its not your grandmothers disease anymore.

There are many different types of arthritis, but its commonly referred to joint pain or joint disease. Symptoms of arthritis include swelling, pain, stiffness and decreased range of motion, according to the Arthritis Foundation. It is a disability that can change a persons way of life.

You dont just take a couple aspirin and everything is fine, Turkington said. its like your joints become your enemy and it attacks them.

The Arthritis Foundation Alaska helps fund research, public health programs and advocacy. Last year more than 2,600 Alaska relied on the foundation as atool, according to its website.

The money raised at the 2017 Midnight Sun Charity Golf Classicwill go to the foundation.

Eighty-two percent of all the funds raised go directly to finding a cure and supporting those who suffer, and here in Alaska, Turkington said. Which is unheard of in the nonprofit world where mostly 30 percent goes to admin-type costs.

Midnight Sun Charity Golf Classic Swing into Solstice

Visit link:
Play a round of golf, help people living with arthritis - KTVA.com - Anchorage, Alaska

By Cottage Health | June 7, 2017 | 9:30 a.m.

Few of us need to be given more reasons to drop those extra pounds. We could do it for our hearts or our chins, for lower medical bills or freer spirits.

But did you know you should also do it for your joints?

Being overweight increases your risk of degenerative arthritis in the weight-bearing joints, especially the knees, said Dr. Victor Tacconelli, an orthopedic surgeon affiliated with Cottage Health.

According to the U.S. Surgeon Generals Office, your odds of developing osteoarthritis (OA) the most common type of the disease increase by 9 percent to 13 percent for every two-pound increase in weight.

In other words, being 20 pounds overweight doubles your chances of getting arthritis.

Conversely, losing just 12 pounds halves the risk of osteoarthritis for overweight women, according to Dr. David Felson, the former director of the Boston University Arthritis Center and currently a professor at Boston University School of Medicine.

There is no doubt that being overweight contributes to getting osteoarthritis and to making it worse, he told Arthritis Today magazine.

The extra weight is especially hard on the knees, since every extra pound you carry adds a three- or four-pound load to each knee, Felson says.

Study after study has established the link between being overweight or obese and having arthritis in the hips or knees. According to one study, obese women were nearly four times as likely as nonobese women to develop osteoarthritis of the knee, and the risk for obese men was nearly five times greater.

In fact, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 66 percent of people with arthritis are overweight or obese.

If you already have osteoarthritis, doctors say that losing just a few pounds can significantly decrease your pain, not to mention lower your chances of developing OA in other weight-bearing joints.

Remember, for every pound you lose, its like taking four pounds of load off each knee every time you take a step.

One problem is that osteoarthritis often makes it painful to exercise, leading many sufferers to avoid physical activity and put on even more weight. But low-impact exercises, like water aerobics and bicycling, can help your sore joints and relieve stiffness and swelling.

Read the rest here:
Arthritis and Your Weight Have More of a Connection Than You Think - Noozhawk

With each jump on the trampoline, Katie Chipman soared a little higher.

The creaks of springs and the thunk of her feet hitting the trampoline echoed through the quiet gym. After half a dozen jumps, the 12-year-old threw out the tricks.

Flips, spirals, twists.

When her turn was done, she sat on the sideline, applauding and cheering on her teammates.

But seven years ago, that scene was unthinkable. Diagnosed with juvenile arthritis, Katie couldnt stand or walk, let alone compete in gymnastics.

One in every 250 children in the United States is affected by variations of the disease, according to the Arthritis Foundation.

Katies parents noticed the problem when she was 5. It started with fevers, muscle aches and a rash on her legs. The symptoms would come and go during the day and leave her exhausted. All she did was sleep.

Within a week, Katies mom took her to the familys pediatrician at Offutt Air Force Base. Katies father, Todd Chipman, was stationed there while in the Navy.

The pediatrician diagnosed Katie with a virus.

While a normal virus will run its course, this one only got worse.

I knew something wasnt right with my kid. It wasnt just a cold, her mom, Kim Chipman, said.

The Papillion family went to urgent care. Doctors there gave Katie a steroid shot that alleviated symptoms for a few days before they returned.

Almost a month after her first visit, Katie and her mom returned to the doctors office on base. After a barrage of tests, they had an answer: systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis. That type of the disease is characterized by a spiking fever and rash.

No one in the family, including Katies twin sister, had arthritis.

I remember I looked at the doctor and said, Can we go back to mystery virus instead of this? This diagnosis is her whole life, Chipman said. It was certainly something we had to wrap our heads around.

Katie had to give up gymnastics, and she couldnt sit on the floor with kindergarten classmates, because it would be too hard to get back up.

Katies pediatric rheumatologist put her on steroids to curb inflammation. The drugs doubled the girls weight. Doctors struggled to find a medication to keep arthritis symptoms at bay without introducing a different problem.

Katie tried at-home injections, but that didnt sufficiently calm the arthritis. About a year and a half into her diagnosis, Katie started twice-a-month infusion treatments at Childrens Hospital & Medical Center.

Administered through an IV, the treatments ease Katies symptoms without introducing new side effects. Each appointment takes about four hours.

That medication is like gold for her, Kim Chipman said. It gave her her life back.

There is a risk that shell stop responding to the treatment. But theres also a slight chance that her symptoms may lessen enough to allow her to get off medication altogether.

Katies type of arthritis accounts for 10 percent of the arthritis seen in children nationally, said Dr. Adam Reinhardt, a pediatric rheumatologist at Childrens Hospital & Medical Center.

For many arthritis patients, gymnastics would be out of the question because the sport requires so much joint activity, Reinhardt said. But infusion treatments have significantly limited the symptoms of her disease.

The fact that she has responded this well to therapy and gone on to be a high-level gymnast and tumbler is impressive, Reinhardt said.

Staying active is important for adults and children diagnosed with arthritis.

Katie started gymnastics while the family was living in Hawaii. Chipman home-schooled her four children, and they did gymnastics for physical education. The other children stopped participating in the sport after moving to Papillion eight years ago.

But Katie wanted to continue. She competes on a trampoline and tumbling team through Airborne Academy near 111th and Q Streets.

At a recent regional competition, Katie took first in the trampoline category. She placed third in the double mini category another trampoline exercise and sixth in tumbling. At the end of the month, shell compete with her teammates at nationals in Milwaukee.

I want to do it because its fun, Katie said. I want to put time and effort into it, because I want to compete well.

When patients like Katie have flares of the disease, they need to take it easy and manage the pain. When Katie has a flare-up, the original symptoms fever, rash and joint pain return.

Its kind of like a freight train. It takes awhile to get going, but once it does, its hard to stop, her mom said.

Katie's gymnastics coach, Tex Womack, said its up to Katie to speak up at the gym if shes hurting.

Womack, whos been working with Katie since August, didnt know about her arthritis until she missed a few practices. He said she rarely mentions the topic in the gym.

Shes a real tough athlete, he said. She doesnt make a big deal of it to me.

Katie, who will start eighth grade at Papillion Middle School in the fall, doesnt want the disease to make her different.

I just have to go through it sometimes, because I dont like to sit out, Katie said. I like to be like everyone else and like a normal kid.

At a recent practice, Katie got a running start before launching herself onto a trampoline. She jumped once and did a back flip before gaining momentum and height. After two more back flips, she landed gingerly in a pit of foam squares.

Thats all you ever want for your kids: to be able to do what they love, Chipman said. Were very thankful weve found something that works.

kelsey.stewart@owh.com, 402-444-3100,twitter.com/kels2

Visit link:
Gymnast, 12, flies high in spite of living with juvenile arthritis | Real ... - Omaha World-Herald

A Philadelphia-based company along with an Indian orthopedic surgeon has said it will start a new type of stem cell therapy that claims it can bring people back from the dead.

Bioquark, led by chief executive Ira Pastor, said it will begin conducting trials of the therapy later in the year in an undisclosed country in Latin America, according to a New York Post report.

Pastor and Indian orthopedic surgeon Himanshu Bansal had initially hoped to run tests in India in 2016 but the Indian Council of Medical Research pulled the plug on their plans and asked them to take the trials elsewhere, the Post reported.

Most countries officially declare someone dead when there is irreversible loss of brain function. The Bioquark therapy boasts it can reboot the brain.

The company said it will begin testing on humans, with no plans to experiment on animals.

Scientists plan to examine individuals aged between 15 and 65 who have been declared brain dead from a traumatic brain injury, the report noted, citing a published study.

The three-stage process starts with harvesting stem cells from the patients own blood before injecting them back into their body. Next, the patient is given a dose of peptides injected into their spinal cord. The final step is a 15-day course of laser and median nerve stimulation while monitoring the patient with MRI scans.

Bansal practices in New Delhi.

Read the rest here:
Bioquark Hopes to Bring Dead Back to Life Using Stem Cell Therapy - India West

Nature.com

Plant genetics Branching out for crop improvement Nature.com Inflorescence architecture is the arrangement of flowers and their underlying stem branching patterns, and it has important effects on the yield of the fruits or grains from agricultural plants. A new study dissects key genetic underpinnings of tomato ...

See more here:
Plant genetics Branching out for crop improvement - Nature.com