Northern, WI 1/25/12 (StreetBeat) -- Cord Blood America, Inc. (OTCBB: CBAI), the umbilical cord blood stem cell preservation company focused on bringing the life saving potential of stem cells to families nationwide and internationally, said today reports that umbilical cord blood stem cells have been successfully used to treat individuals with type 1 diabetes, highlighting the importance of storing stem cells at birth.According to reports in Medical News Today and USA Today, stem cells from cord blood have been used to "reeducate" the immune system T cells of people with type 1 diabetes so their pancreas started producing insulin again, reducing the amount of insulin they needed to inject. The treatment was even successful with long-standing diabetics who were believed to have no insulin-producing ability.
The scientists involved in the experiment said the treatment could potentially be useful in other autoimmune diseases, such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.
Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body's immune system cells attack the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. This means the cells don't produce enough insulin, and the lost insulin has to be replaced through injections for the patient to survive.
Also recently in the news, scientists at the University of Central Florida announced they have transformed stem cells from umbilical cords into other types of cells, which could be key in therapies for spinal cord injuries, multiple sclerosis and other nervous system diseases.
"Sometimes we forget, as we go about our daily activities, just how revolutionary is the storage and use of umbilical cord blood stem cells for medical treatment. We will continue to monitor the medical literature and keep our investors up-to-date on the amazing progress of these stem cells, which have already been used to treat or cure more than 70 diseases," said Matthew Schissler, co-founder and CEO. "Kalorama Information, a healthcare market research firm, estimates the markets for stem cell technologies soon could top $1 billion. It also states that umbilical cord blood is without controversy and that many people support the notion of routinely collecting cord blood at birth."
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