The University of Louisville Alumni Magazine: for alumni, faculty, staff, students and anyone that is a UofL Cardinal fan.
Issue link: https://louisville.epubxp.com/i/43017
Research Patient, heal thyself UofL researcher Dr. Roberto Bolli and Dr. Piero Anversa of Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston are leading investigation teams in a groundbreaking new procedure that uses patients' own stem cells to help heal them after coronary bypass surgery. So far, patients who have undergone heart by- pass surgery are experienc- ing improved heart function through post-operative autologous transfusions. While stem-cell transfu- Improving the long-term graft survival of PVD patients is now possible when UofL physicians isolate a patient's own stem cells and use them to coat the inside of a manmade vein graft that closely resembles the natural vessels. Fatty tissue is then harvested from the patient through liposuction and processed to concentrate vascular stem cells. At that point, cells are attached to standard prosthetic grafts in the operating room directly at the "point-of-care." Liposuction, stem cell combo heals vascular patients In the fi rst FDA-approved trial using a patient's own adipose (fat)-derived adult stem cells (ASCs), the fi rst three patients to undergo this surgical procedure for the treatment of peripheral vascular disease (PVD) are doing well, reports UofL surgeon Charles B. Ross, MD, principal investigator and chief of the Division of Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapeutics. The trial — aimed at increasing long-term graft survival of patients who suffer from PVD, which causes damage or blockage in the blood vessels of peripheral arteries and veins — is a partnership between UofL and Hawaii-based Tissue Genesis Inc., a leader in adult stem cell and regenerative medicine. The procedure uses a fully automated system in which a patient's own stem cells are isolated and used to coat the inside of a manmade vein graft that closely resembles the natural vessels. Fatty tissue is then harvested from each patient through liposuction and processed to concentrate vascular stem cells. At that point, cells are attached to standard prosthetic grafts in the operating room directly at the "point-of-care." Not only has the process been shown to reduce the risk of clotting, but it is also proving to increase the chances of saving the limbs of PVD patients, who often undergo amputations as the disease progresses. Approximately eight million Americans are affected by PVD, with the number expected to increase 43 percent by 2020. In the U.S., 130,000 amputations are performed each year due to PVD. This revolutionary process was developed by Dr. Stuart Williams, chief science offi cer for Tissue Genesis and executive and scientifi c director of the Cardiovascular Innovation Institute, a collaboration between UofL and Jewish Hospital & St. Mary's Healthcare. Williams and Ross are joined in the study by Drs. Marvin E. Morris and Amit J. Dwivedi. "I am pleased to see our efforts in the laboratory to perfect and automate this stem cell process are now being translated to treat patients who desperately need new technology to avoid amputations," said Williams. "Based on previous studies, the potential of ASCs to increase the patency and life of the graft is tremendous." 14|LOUISVILLE.EDU Dr. Roberto Bolli sion is minimally invasive, the technique is a highly complicated process: First, Bolli's team removes patients' stem cells and additional heart tissue at the time of coronary artery bypass surgery. Then, the material is transferred to Anversa's lab in Boston, where the stem cells are separated from other heart tissue and allowed to grow. About three to fi ve months after the surgery, doctors in Louisville give the patients a transfusion of their own stem cells, targeting the scarred region of the heart. Mike Jones of Jefferson County was the fi rst of the 16 patients who have already received the new treatment. One year later, he reports improved heart health and an improved quality of life. "I'm doing a whole lot better than I deserve," said Jones. "While I haven't gone out jogging, I am able to do a whole lot more with my grandkids. I can play ball with them now, whereas before I could only pass the ball three or four times before I had to stop. I can't take them on in a real game on the court, but it is a lot more than I could do previ- ously," he said. "The initial results are very encouraging," said Bolli, director of the Insti- tute of Molecular Cardiolo- gy and chief of the Division of Cardiology at UofL, during an annual meet- ing of the American Heart Association in Chicago. According to Bolli, heart function is improving in patients who have received the procedure. Data on nine patients taken four months after receiving the stem-cell transfusion showed that left ventricular function (a measure of heart function) had increased by an average of nine percent. "With drug-coated stents implanted after a heart attack, we see an increase of between four and fi ve percent," said Bolli. Three of the 16 patients treated received infusions more than one year ago. Their hearts have main- tained the increased func- tion that resulted from the infusions. Bolli stressed to the AHA that the fi ndings are preliminary, and larger- scale studies must be un- dertaken before the therapy can be used widely.