ASH News Daily - Monday, December 12, 2011 - (Page A-8)
Page A–8
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ASH NEWS DAILY
Monday, December 12, 2011
Marie Arturi, recipient of the 2011 ASH Award for Outstanding Service, shares
a laugh with Dr. George Weiner after speaking at Sunday’s Grassroots Network
Breakfast.
Stem Cells
«« From Page A-5
potentially provide a stable supply
of platelets.
Dr. Mortimer Poncz introduced
the talk and discussed the clinical
importance of using hematopoietic
progenitor cells as opposed to induced
pluripotent stem cells in generating
mature megakaryocytes; in
the latter, the yield of platelets from
megakaryocytes is inefficient, producing
hundreds of non-directed
cells. By using hematopoietic progenitor
cells, Dr. Takayama and colleagues
are able to generate a sufficient
number of functional platelets.
CiRA previously showed that
the pattern of c-Myc reactivation
influences the generation of platelets
derived from hiPSCs. Specifically,
sustained excessive c-Myc
expression induces senescence and
apoptosis, diminishing the production
of functional platelets, whereas
an increase in expression of c-Myc
followed by a decline is associated
with efficient platelet generation. To
explore this further, the group created
different protocols containing
hematopoietic progenitor cells using
various candidate genes. They
found that turning off gene cassette
overexpression of c-Myc and BMI1
led to the development of non-polyploid
megakaryocytes.
Based on this finding, using de-
High School senior William Qu discusses his poster, “Effects of Enhanced
Physical Exercise of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Cell Aging,” with Dr. Ivo
Touw, Rotterland, The Netherlands.
fined culture conditions and gene
manipulation techniques, they
were able to establish immortalized
megakaryocytic progenitor cells
(iMKPCs) that produced “functional”
platelets. They went on to transfuse
platelets derived from their
iMKPCs into mice, which showed
normal distribution within the circulatory
system using in vivo posttransfusion
kinetic studies. They
also demonstrated in vivo functionality
by showing that the platelets
contributed to thrombus formation
in injured vessels in living mice.
Dr. Takayama’s abstract raises
several important questions, including
the mechanism(s) by which
hematopoietic cells derived from
hiPSCs are able to survive and retain
their functional abilities in the
recipient. According to supervisor
Dr. Koji Eto, the next phase of research
for Dr. Takayama and colleagues
will be preclinical in vivo
and ex vivo studies focused on the
length of time iMKPCs could be
established prior to transfusion,
while retaining their functionality.
Dr. Takayama’s presentation was
met with enthusiasm, as we learned
more about the use of hiPSCs as a
powerful research tool, with the potential
of novel targeted therapeutics
for hematopoietic disorders.
Drs. Garcia and Ghanny indicated
no relevant conflicts of interest.
The halls of the San Diego Convention Center are a swarm of activity with ASH members
coming and going to meetings.
Dr. Craig Morrell delivers his presentation during the session
titled “Transfusion Medicine I: Adverse Complications of
Stored Blood.”
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ASH News Daily - Monday, December 12, 2011
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