Browsing by Author "Chaudhry, G. Rasul"

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    Advances and challenges in stem cell culture
    (2017-07-27) McKee, Christina; Chaudhry, G. Rasul
    Stem cells (SCs) hold great promise for cell therapy, tissue engineering, and regenerative medicine as well as pharmaceutical and biotechnological applications. They have the capacity to self-renew and the ability to differentiate into specialized cell types depending upon their source of isolation. However, use of SCs for clinical applications requires a high quality and quantity of cells. This necessitates large-scale expansion of SCs followed by efficient and homogeneous differentiation into functional derivatives. Traditional methods for maintenance and expansion of cells rely on two-dimensional (2-D) culturing techniques using plastic culture plates and xenogenic media. These methods provide limited expansion and cells tend to lose clonal and differentiation capacity upon long-term passaging. Recently, new approaches for the expansion of SCs have emphasized three-dimensional (3-D) cell growth to mimic the in vivo environment. This review provides a comprehensive compendium of recent advancements in culturing SCs using 2-D and 3-D techniques involving spheroids, biomaterials, and bioreactors. In addition, potential challenges to achieve billion-fold expansion of cells are discussed.
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    Dopaminergic neuron regeneration using cell therapy in a rat model of Parkinson’s disease
    Chippi, Gina; Chaudhry, G. Rasul
    Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic neurodegenerative movement disorder caused by the loss of dopaminergic (DA) neurons located within the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) of the midbrain. Current treatments involving drug therapy only temporarily alleviate the symptoms and does not treat the etiology of the disease. Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) hold vast promise in cell therapy due to their multipotency and immunomodulatory properties. We hypothesize that MSCs can be induced to differentiate into DA neuron progenitors which can be transplanted into the SNpc to treat PD. In this project, we propose to develop a method to differentiate MSCs into DA neuron progenitors, as well as investigate their safety and efficacy when injected into a neonatal animal model of PD developed in our lab. The results of this study will aid in devising strategies to replace degenerated neurons, and to reverse and/or halt the progression of PD.
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    Isolation and comparative analysis of potential stem/progenitor cells from different regions of human umbilical cord
    (2016-10-27) Beeravolu, Naimisha; Khan, Irfan; McKee, Christina; Dinda, Sumi; Thibodeau, Bryan; Wilson, George; Perez-Cruet, Mick; Bahado-Singh, Ray; Chaudhry, G. Rasul
    Human umbilical cord (hUC) blood and tissue are non-invasive sources of potential stem/progenitor cells with similar cell surface properties as bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs). While they are limited in cord blood, they may be more abundant in hUC. However, the hUC is an anatomically complex organ and the potential of cells in various sites of the hUC has not been fully explored.We dissected the hUC into its discrete sites and isolated hUC cells from the cord placenta junction (CPJ), cord tissue (CT), and Wharton's jelly (WJ). Isolated cells displayed fibroblastoid morphology, and expressed CD29, CD44, CD73, CD90, and CD105, and showed evidence of differentiation into multiple lineages in vitro. They also expressed low levels of pluripotency genes, OCT4, NANOG, SOX2 and KLF4. Passaging markedly affected cell proliferation with concomitant decreases in the expression of pluripotency and other markers, and an increase in chondrogenic markers. Microarray analysis further revealed the differences in the gene expression of CPJ-, CT- and WJ-hUC cells. Five coding and five lncRNA genes were differentially expressed in low vs. high passage hUC cells. Only MAEL was expressed at high levels in both low and high passage CPJ-hUC cells. They displayed a greater proliferation limit and a higher degree of multi-lineage differentiation in vitro and warrant further investigation to determine their full differentiation capacity, and therapeutic and regenerative medicine potential.
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    Meeting Report: The First Midwest Conference on Stem Cell Biology and Therapy (SCBT)
    (Oakland University, 2010-10-01) Dinda, Sumi; Chaudhry, G. Rasul; Cole, Natalie B.
    This well-planned conference was structured into a unique 3-day format designed to bring together scientists and clinicians from various disciplines to share their research results and experiences as well as ideas concerning future research and therapeutic strategies in this rapidly advancing field of stem cell biology. Given the wealth of information presented and the range of topics covered, we will not even attempt to summarize all the findings in this brief report. We present here some of the highlights of the conference proceedings.
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    Stem Cell Research - Promise and Potential
    (Oakland University, 2012-10-01) McKee, Christina; Lucier, Christopher; Dinda, Sumi; Chavez, Ferman; Mitchell, Anne; Shanley, Charles; PrezeCruet, Mick; Chaudhry, G. Rasul; Cole, Natalie B.
    Stem cell research at Oakland University.