The stem cells are autologous meaning they are taken from a patients own bone marrow. Nathan Wei, Clinical Director of the Arthritis and Osteoporosis Center of Maryland, a nationally respected arthritis research facility located in Frederick, Maryland, We are measuring results using a number of devices including ultrasound measurement of cartilage thickness, special x ray views, health assessment questionnaires, and other similar tools..

Is it possible to control the aging process of osteoarthritis and reverse its negative effects on weight bearing joints such as the knees?

The answer may surprise you. Using ultrasound guidance, the stem cells are Auto Repair Bearing then introduced into the knee along with platelet rich plasma, a component of whole blood, that stimulates receptors located on the surface of stem cells to cause multiplication and division of the stem cells.

He goes on to say, This research could have real benefits for arthritis sufferers and especially younger active patients with cartilage lesions that can progress to whole scale osteoarthritis.

Many studies have been conducted both in large animals as well as humans. According to Dr.

In a reported in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases in 2006, osteoarthritis may be a sign of faster biological aging.

Symptoms of osteoarthritis include stiff, swollen, painful joints. Also, obese people are definitely not candidates so body mass index is an important selection criterion.

Scientists at the Scripps Institute in La Jolla, California have shown how the loss of the protein HMGB2, found in the surface layer of joint cartilage, leads to the progressive deterioration of the cartilage that is the hallmark of osteoarthritis..
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Stem cell transplantation for the study and treatment of osteoarthritis in humans is now being conducted at a few centers.

We have found the mechanism that begins to explain how and why aging leads to deterioration of articular cartilage, says Scripps Research Professor Martin Lotz, M. The authors based their findings on a study of almost 1100 people, aged between 30 and 79.

He goes on to say, One of the hurdles is that cartilage growth is slow... Often subjective measures of effectiveness, such as pain, improve much more quickly than objective measurements.

Professor Rick Read, lead investigator stated, We are delighted with the significant cartilage protective effects of .

The results showed that osteoarthritic sheep knee joints receiving stem cells had significantly greater thickness of joint cartilage, reduced cartilage breakdown, and greater biomechanical strength three months later than did control joints. For instance, patients above the age of 70 75 may not be the best candidates because of sluggish stem cell response. We are still trying to develop specific profiles of patients that will determine which people are the best candidates.) study has lent credence to the idea that stem cell therapy should be studied in humans. Our findings demonstrate a direct link between the loss of this protein and osteoarthritis. This process causes the formation of bony spurs, called osteophytes.

One such project was conducted at the Murdoch School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences (Australia)..

The field of regenerative medicine has long believed that adult stem cells have the potential to significantly protect and possibly regrow cartilage in conditions such as knee osteoarthritis.

Lead researcher Professor Charlie Archer reports, We have identified a cell which, when grown in the lab, can produce enough of a person s own cartilage that it could be effectively transplanted. As the condition progresses, the joints become deformed and knobby.

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis it s estimated that perhaps 30 million people in the United States suffer from the condition., a world renowned arthritis researcher.

A Cardiff University (U.

While still investigational, the early results look promising.D.. The authors suggested that both the aging process and osteoarthritis share biological factors in common, including oxidative stress and low level chronic inflammation.. The bone underneath the cartilage compensates by getting thicker and growing outwards beyond the joint.. or simply take your granddaughter to the zoo without dreading the thought of struggling up and down steps or curvy hilly pathways. run a 10 K race.

Osteoarthritis is a disease caused by wear and tear.. The cartilage the cushions at the end of long bones erode away prematurely and become thinner and rougher.K.

They are then concentrated using a special technique..How can some people defy aging joints while your knees keep getting older every day? What would you do to have knees that were 20 years younger? If you had knees that were 20 years younger, what would you do first?

Maybe go for a long bike ride. The area of injury at the site of knee osteoarthritis is then identified, reinjured using another special technique to induce an inflammatory response.

Murdochs cartilage trials evaluated the effectiveness and safety of allogeneic adult stem cells to treat osteoarthritis of the knee in 48 arthritic sheep joints.allogeneic (donor unrelated) cells in our large animal model of knee osteoarthritis, without any adverse events of the cells at all.