User:Leo181/Stem Cell Educator

The stem cell educator is a device used to change or "re-educate" the behavior of human immune cells, so as to alleviate or cure certain autoimmune diseases. In particular the device has been studied in the treatment of type 1 diabetes, where a single treatment improves patients' ability to control their own blood sugar. The device has the potential to provide effective treatments for other autoimmune disorders.

Device
Cord blood-derived multipotent stem cells (CB-SCs) are isolated from human cord blood and act as educators for the patient's immune cells in the chamber. The hydrophobic material from (USP Class VI) plastic Petri dishes tightly binds CB-SCs without interfering with their immune modulating capability.

The chamber for co-culture of lymphocytes and CB-SCs includes nine discs of the material with adherent CB-SCs sandwiched between a top cover plate and a bottom collecting plate. The device is manufactured in a Class 100K clean room and gamma-irradiated prior to introducing CB-SCs.

In the stem cell educator chamber, lymphocytes separated from a patient's blood are slowly passed through the stacked discs of material with adherent CB-SCs, and lymphocytes collected through a hole in the bottom plate are returned to the patient.

Applications
Stem cell educator therapy has been studied for possible use in type 2 diabetes and alopecia areata.

The therapy has been shown to be able to "re-educate" immune system T cells to stop them from destroying the patient's insulin-producing pancreas cells. A single treatment is reported to cause safe and lasting improvement in the patient's own control of blood sugar and hence the practical treatment of type 1 diabetes, by reducing autoimmune attack on the islets of Langerhans cells that produce insulin.

"A phase II human clinical trial of type 1 diabetes was started in 2012 in China and Spain. Participants from 14 years to 60 years were recruited in both locations. The JDRF recently funded Mark Atkinson to test the Stem Cell Educator to confirm its efficacy and independently verify parts of Yong Zhao's results."

The Australian reported that according to lead Stem Cell Educator project researcher Zhao, the same approach might be suitable for other autoimmune diseases including lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis.

Reception
According to USA Today, Luca Inverardi of the University of Miami Diabetes Research Institute commented that it is "quite remarkable that this approach, based on the re-education of immune cells, might work so well." The educator treatment appears "so simple and so safe".