Parkinson’s Disease – VJRegenMed

The future of omentum-based autologous tissue engineering

Simon Ng — Thu, 21 Apr 2022 15:01:23 +0000

Advances in autologous tissue regeneration in the form of an omentum-derived hydrogel and induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived tissue have led to promising therapies for spinal cord injury and cardiac infarction. Asaf Toker, MD, Matricelf, Ness Ziona, Israel, provides an overview of the future of this novel technology. Whilst currently only being assessed in two indications, this method of autologous tissue engineering can theoretically be applied to any type of damaged tissue. Potential indications include Parkinson’s Disease, age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and other musculoskeletal disorders. This interview was conducted during Meeting on the Mediterranean 2022.

Driving the development of gene therapies for more common conditions

Simon Ng — Wed, 13 Oct 2021 17:11:13 +0000

Paul Gissen, MD, PhD, UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, London, UK, discusses translating advances made in gene therapies for rare monogenic disorders to more common chronic conditions, including neurodegenerative and liver diseases. The global COVID-19 vaccine rollout demonstrated that technologies initially designed for the treatment of a small number of patients, including RNA and viral vector-based therapies, were able to be manufactured at a greater scale and administered to a very large number of patients. Prof. Gissen highlights the importance of global investment to enhance the development and manufacturing capacity of such gene therapies in the future. This interview took place at the Advanced Therapies Congress & Expo 2021.

Highlights from ASGCT 2021: iPSCs & the immunological barrier

admin_vjr_user — Thu, 12 Aug 2021 10:07:40 +0000

Sonja Schrepfer, MD, PhD, Sana Biotechnology, Seattle, WA, shares her highlights from the American Society for Cell & Gene Therapy (ASGCT) 24th Annual Meeting 2021. Recent developments include an improved focus and understanding of immunological barriers associated with allogeneic induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cells. Other highlights include advances seen in the development of iPSC-based therapies including iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurons for Parkinson’s disease and iPSC-derived retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) for macular degeneration. This interview took place during the American Society for Cell & Gene Therapy 24th Annual Meeting 2021.