The increase in the stem cell (SC) banking and cord blood banking market, which has increased the number of stem cell procedures are the major drivers of stem cell therapy. The stem cell banking market is thus complementing the stem cell therapy market. Moreover, the growth in the list of potential applications is also aiding the growth of the market, according to a report.
Over the last decade, the number of publications per year on stem cell-related research has increased multi-fold. Rising R&D initiatives to develop therapeutic options for chronic diseases and growing demand for a regenerative treatment option are the most significant drivers of this budding industry, the report adds.
According to the report, the stem cell market is expected to reach $170 billion by 2020. However, several challenges are currently preventing the use of stem cells particularly in western countries, where intense regulatory hurdles have resulted in the slow progress in treatment approvals unlike countries such as China, where stem cell therapies have received a greater acceptance by the government and are practised on a larger scope of therapies. Reimbursement and cost of treatment is expected to be one of the most significant challenges to this market since ethical issues as well cost incurred to hospital for technology used to complete all stages of stem cell therapies. Since several therapies are not covered for by insurance, out-of-pocket expenses are enormous in most experimental cases.
Stem cell therapy is relatively an old research area in biopharmaceutical and biotechnology. There are an estimated two million research projects covering all aspects of stem cell research over the world. There are over 400 clinical trials being conducted across the world for SC therapy products.
Stem cells are characterized by their potential to develop into fully functional cells of a specific organ or tissue in the body. Theoretically stem cells can be artificially coaxed into becoming a muscular cell, nerve cell or any other based on the medical requirement. This capability called “Totipotency” is sometimes lost along the development stages and cells then become pleuripotent, multi-potent and oligopotent at each level. The stem cells of the body include embryonic stem cells, which are present in a blastocyst, foetal stem cells, cord blood stem cells (isolated from umbilical cord), adipose tissue, hematopoietic stem cells and dental stem cells. Stem cells and progenitor cells help act as a treatment and can perform as a damage repair mechanism of the body. Umbilical stem cells and embryonic stem cells can be stored in cryogenic-refrigeration as a stem cell storage bank for later use.
Stem cells have been applied in several therapies of late, particularly in oncology and brain disorders. The potential areas of stem cell therapy are limitless since the stem cells adapt to various body stimulus to convert into cells of unique function and type.
The future of stem cell therapeutics
Tissue engineering , stem cell banking , clinical applications of MSCs and Parabiosis are the top four areas in the space to watch, according to some of the experts.
Tissue engineering
Tissue engineering using the body’s own stem cells to repair, replace or augment diseased tissue is a rapidly evolving field. It is the use of a combination of cells, engineering and materials methods, and suitable biochemical and physicochemical factors to improve or replace biological tissues. This has evolved from the field of biomaterials development and refers to the practice of combining scaffolds, cells, and biologically active molecules into functional tissues. The goal of tissue engineering is to assemble functional constructs that restore, maintain, or improve damaged tissues or whole organs.
Patients with a variety of diseases may be treated with transplanted tissues and organs. Scientists in the field of tissue engineering are applying the principles of cell transplantation, material science, and bioengineering to construct biological substitutes that will restore and maintain normal function in diseased and injured tissues. The stem cell field is also advancing rapidly, opening new options for cellular therapy and tissue engineering. Use of post-natal stem cells has the potential to significantly alter the perspective of tissue engineering.
Stem cell banking
A cord blood bank is a facility which stores umbilical cord blood for future use. Both private and public cord blood banks have developed in response to the potential for cord blood in treating diseases of the blood and immune systems.
Since at the moment of birth, one is probably at the point of biological perfection, our system has not been exposed to all of those injurious stimuli, like electromagnetic radiation, chemicals, etc. and biological software is uncorrupted. Stem cell banking allows us to capture stem cells with our original, uncorrupted DNA at birth, replicate them into a large number of future dosages and then freeze those doses.
Today, cord blood stems cells are used in the treatment of nearly 80 diseases, including a wide range of cancers, genetic diseases, and blood disorders. In a cord blood transplant, stem cells are infused in to a patient's bloodstream where they go to work healing and repairing damaged cells and tissue.
In addition to cord blood, the placenta of a newborn is an organ which is very rich in stem cells. Rather than discard the leftovers of birth, placentas, if saved, may hold the key to a longer and healthier life.
Clinical applications of MSCs
Mesenchymal stem cells(MSCs) are multipotent stromal cells that can differentiate into a variety of cell types including: osteoblasts (bone cells), chondrocytes (cartilage cells),myocytes (muscle cells)and adipocytes (fat cells).These MSCs are have been used in the clinic for approximately 10 years. Currently, 344 registered clinical trials in different clinical trial phases are aimed at evaluating the potential of MSC-based cell therapy worldwide. From animal models to clinical trials, MSCs have afforded the promise in the treatment of numerous diseases. The ability of MSCs to differentiate into osteoblasts, tenocytes and chondrocytes have attracted interest for their use in orthopaedic settings. First, MSCs have been shown to be beneficial in treating bone disorders, such as osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) and hypophosphatasia. Other promising therapeutic avenues for MSCs include the treatment of autoimmune disease, cardiovascular disease, liver disease and cancer.
Parabiosis
Parabiosis is the practice of having younger people’s blood transfused into one’s veins in order to prolong life. In Monterey, California, about 120 miles from San Francisco, a company called Ambrosia has recently commenced one of the trials. Titled "Young Donor Plasma Transfusion and Age-Related Biomarkers," it has a simple protocol: Healthy participants aged 35 and older get a transfusion of blood plasma from donors under 25 and researchers monitor their blood over the next two years for molecular indicators of health and ageing. The study is patient-funded; participants, who range in age from late 30s through 80s, must pay $8,000 to take part, and live in or travel to Monterey for treatments and follow-up assessments.
Ambrosia's founder, the Stanford-trained physician Jesse Karmazin, has been studying ageing for more than a decade. He became interested in launching a company around parabiosis after seeing impressive data from animals and studies conducted abroad in humans: In one trial after another, subjects experience a reversal of ageing symptoms across every major organ system. While the mechanisms at play aren't totally understood, he said, young organisms' blood not only contains all sorts of proteins that improve cell function; somehow it also prompts the recipients' body to increase its production of those proteins.
This company has recently received funding from Peter Thiel, the billionaire technology investor and Donald Trump supporter. He's channelled millions of dollars into startups working on anti-aging medicine, spends considerable time and money researching therapies for his personal use, and believes society ought to open its mind to life-extension methods that sound weird or unsavoury.
Stem cell therapy makes continuous progress
Stem cell therapy has been making continuous progress and recently there has been another jump forward with this new cutting edge therapy. The use of these birth tissue products is extremely safe and very effective in mending the body.
According to a recent report , researchers have developed a synthetic version of a cardiac stem cell that could offer therapeutic benefits comparable to those from natural stem cells and could reduce some of the risks associated with stem cell therapies.
Stem cell therapies aid damaged tissue in repairing itself by secreting “paracrine factors,” including proteins and genetic materials. While stem cell therapies can be effective, they are also associated with some risks of both tumour growth and immune rejection.
Also, the cells themselves are very fragile, requiring careful storage and a multi-step process of typing and characterisation before they can be used.