Stem Cell Responsiveness to Imatinib in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia.

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a clonal myeloproliferative disease characterized by the presence of the BCR-ABL fusion gene, which results from the Philadelphia chromosome. Since the introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) such as imatinib mesylate (IM), the clinical outcomes for patients with CML have improved significantly. However, IM resistance remains the major clinical challenge for many patients, underlining the need to develop new drugs for the treatment of CML.

Development of a potency assay for CD34 cell-based therapy.

We have previously shown that intracardiac delivery of autologous CD34 cells after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is safe and leads to long term improvement. We are now conducting a multicenter, randomized, controlled Phase I/IIb study in post-AMI to investigate the safety and efficacy of intramyocardial injection of expanded autologous CD34 cells (ProtheraCytes) (NCT02669810). Here, we conducted a series of in vitro studies characterizing the growth factor secretion, exosome secretion, gene expression, cell surface markers, differentiation potential, and angiogenic potential of ProtheraCytes clinical batches to develop a potency assay.

Deciphering the Cardiovascular Potential of Human CD34 Stem Cells.

Ex vivo monitored human CD34 stem cells (SCs) injected into myocardium scar tissue have shown real benefits for the recovery of patients with myocardial infarctions. They have been used previously in clinical trials with hopeful results and are expected to be promising for cardiac regenerative medicine following severe acute myocardial infarctions. However, some debates on their potential efficacy in cardiac regenerative therapies remain to be clarified.