Spanish researchers have announced a ground breaking clinical trial on the effects of stem cells on Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). They are going to test if it is possible to eliminate HIV with umbilical cord blood stem cells.
The National Organization of Transplants and the Spanish Society of Hematology have devised a procedure that uses a genetic mutation of blood found in some umbilical cord blood. The mutation, called CCR5 Delta 32, is fairly rare. Researchers had to examine more than 25,000 umbilical cord blood units to find 157 units of blood with the mutation.
Director of the National Transplants Organization (NTO), Rafael Matesanz, says that this particular genetic mutation is rare amongst spaniards and is only present in 0.6% of umbilical cord blood samples.
The journal Doctors and Patients has published details the experiment, which is scheduled to commence sometime between December 2015 and January 2016 at the Hospital Puerta de Hierro-Majadahonda of Madrid.
The research is attempting to understand how a patient in Barcelona recovered from HIV after receiving an cord blood stem cell transplant that contained the CCR5 Delta 32 mutation. If researchers can eliminate HIV with umbilical cord blood stem cells, millions of lives could be saved worldwide. Approximately 33 million people currently have HIV around the world.
The study will involve 5 adult patients with HIV who will receive allogenic stem cell transplants. A clinical follow up will be performed 12-months after the procedure to determine if HIV has been eliminated from their systems.
Source: Spain Will Try Eliminate HIV with Umbilical Cord Blood Stem Cells
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