A group of Japanese researchers has spent the past few years working on treatment for macular degeneration using stem cells.  They have just received more funding to perform a clinical trial that tests the safety and efficacy of the treatment when using cells from non-related donors.

The researchers will convert donor-derived induced pluripotent stem (IPS) cells into retinal cells, which are transplanted into patients with macular degeneration.  This is the first time that donated stem cells have been used to treat macular degeneration in a patient.  If the procedure is effective, it could lead to a substantial reduction in cost for stem cell treatments for macular degeneration.

The research team has already successfully tested a stem cell procedure on patients with macular degeneration — but they used the patient’s own cells.  The research is being led by Dr. Masayo Takahashi from the Riken Center for Developmental Biology.

Dr. Asahi Shinbum commented on the cost of the initial procedure, saying: “The procedure was expensive and time-consuming, costing about 100 million yen ($930,000) to cultivate and test the iPS cells and about 11 months for the transplant to take place.”

They believe the costs will be substantially lower if the treatment can work with donated stem cells.  As Dr. Asahi explains: “with the use of the iPS cell stock [from donors], the time frame could be reduced to as short as a month and costs could be significantly reduced.”

The Japanese scientists had their first major breakthrough in September of 2016, when they managed to successfully implant iPSC-derived retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) into other monkeys.  The cells were not rejected and did not trigger graft vs host disease.

If the trial is successful, scientists will have a much more affordable option for using iPSCs to treat macular degeneration.

Source: Regulators OK Clinical Trials Using Donor Stem Cells

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