Bailey Pittl

Brandon Alva

English 2010

5/1/17

Stem Cell Therapy with Alzheimers?

Alzheimers disease is the 6th leading cause of Death in the United states. More than 5

million Americans are living with Alzheimers and this number could raise to 16 million by

2050. Alzheimers disease is rapidly growing and there is no known cause for why its

happening. This disease is taking more and more people and there needs to be an end to it.

Alzheimers disease is a nervous system disease and it affects the neurons in certain areas

of the brain. This is an incurable illness and leads to death because of the progressive death of

brain cells. This can be a very saddening and painful for your loved one to go through and for

you to see. This makes it to the point that you want to do anything to help them and create a

better life for them through treatments and therapies. The one therapy treatment that a lot of

people are looking into is stem cell therapy. This therapy offers you a new life for your family

member with Alzheimers but it hasnt been fully studied and it still isnt legal in the United

States. I believe this therapy offers so much with so little evidence that it actually works.

Cell- replacement therapy is where they take cells out of your bone marrow or fatty tissue

to create beta cells. Beta cells easily change into different tissue types which can help make it

better for those with Alzheimers because when inducted into the brain it can stop shrinkage and

degeneration. This process is very simple compared to others therapies and it has the most
promise in helping with the disease. In an article done by Chunmei and Naihe named The

Promise of Stem cells in the Therapy of Alzheimers disease states Stem Cell based therapy for

repairing degenerative brains of Alzheimers Disease is promising. Through stem cell therapy

specialist are able to repair the damage to those with Alzheimers in the progressive stages. This

therapy opens up so many doors and possibilities for those with Alzheimers and it makes it

possible for them even in their late stages to get relief.

This therapy can be somewhat of a scary thing and it can be overwhelming to think it

might not work but Swiss Medica Clinic states Additionally, because mesenchymal stem cells

are a part of patients body naturally, there is no risk of rejection, side effects or allergic

reactions. The nice part about this process is that it is from your own body you dont have to

have a donor or anything which makes things more comfortable and less unknown. Stem Cell

Therapy is also a very fast and easy it isnt a huge surgery which is really nice, they take your

bone marrow and create beta cells in a laboratory and is transplanted within five days. This is

such a great process because then you can get up when its over and you can walk right out of

there. You dont have to wait around and go through something really difficult and challenging.

Although Stem Cell therapy for Alzheimers has not yet been tested on humans it has

only been done on animals. This can make it very hard to say that it is a great option when

animals are all that they have really studied. An article in The National Undergraduate Research

Journal by Liu states If everything goes well then stem cell treatment can start to be trialed on

human within the next 5- 10 years. This doesnt give a lot surety its more of a, it might work
out. This makes it very difficult to really look to this as an answer for Alzheimers with so little

evidence that it is really working and has been tested on humans. This can be very alarming

because you want the best for you loved one but do you want to put so much time into something

and your family member when they arent sure its even been tested.

This is why the United states isnt doing any stem cell therapy with those who have

Alzheimers yet so in order to get this procedure done youd have to go to Switzerland or

Belgrade to get the procedure done. Which would be very costly not to mention prices of the

actual procedure which wages from 20,000 to way up to 100,000 and that is just for one

treatment. This opens so many doors for those with Alzheimers but only a few people can go

through them because of the expense. I think that this treatment should be more available to

those who dont have tons of money because the percentage of those that do have a lot of money

is very few. I think it should be made more available to those who dont have a ton of money and

become more susceptible to those with lower incomes. If this can cure someone with

Alzheimers dont they want to make it so a lot more people can get cured? For those who dont

have this money and do spend it with credit or whatever they choose to pay with can suffer

extremely if the therapy doesnt work or ends up having a long-term affect.

Alzheimers can be such a hard and difficult disease that causes so much pain and

suffering and it can be devastating to see a loved one go through this. Through stem cell therapy

you can help this loved one and create a better life for them. The process is quick and very

simple, the time between getting lipoaspirate and injection of the activated stem cells is only a
few hours. Swiss Medica clinic states that you dont even need any anesthesia. Stem cell therapy

is opening the doors for those with Alzheimers and is make it possible for them to live a more

normal life. This could very well be true but there needs to be much more research on the matter

and creating a better system.

I Had an interview with Tayler Pines who is an activities coordinator for Alzheimer and

Dementia residents at Cottonwood Place Senior Living and she explained to me a lot about the

residents and what she does for them and how she can see firsthand that it is so hard for the

families to see their loved one suffering. What she does is she helps the residents feel stimulated

and have an enjoyable life while they are going through dementia. This helps them feel that they

are wanted and they have a purpose in life. She explained that she is so grateful that she gets to

bring happiness into their life but she would definitely take a cure if there was one. I asked her if

she knew that there was a stem Cell therapy treatment for those with Alzheimers that can

possible cure this disease and she said she wasnt aware of it. Once I explained what it was and

how it is being studied right now she was super eager to know more and she said that she would

definitely donate to the studies that are going on and she would definitely recommend it to

family members.

Alzheimers is a very complex disease that requires a lot of study and research. The main

thing is that nobody really knows how you get Alzheimers disease and it just rapidly takes you

or slowly gets to you. Alzheimers is tricky because the only other treatment options that they

have had has been medicine to just cope with the stresses and anxiety that they are feeling. The
long-term effects of this therapy are still unknown which can be dangerous. Pros and Cons of

Stem Cell Therapy is an article done by Jason Ladock and it states The stem cell therapy is still

under the process of research and there are a number of things that needs to be established before

it used as a treatment line. There really is so much more research and studies that need to take

place before it becomes a treatment to those with Alzheimers.

This new stem cell research for Alzheimers really is so amazing and I am so excited for

the doors it is opening for those who have Alzheimers and Dementia. I work with Alzheimers

and dementia residents every day and they have such a hard time. It really is so incredibly hard

to see how they progressively get worse and worse and that isnt who they are. These people

deserve to still live a life that they can remember and for those to remember them in the best

way. This makes me extremely excited for them to make this study more known and less

expensive for families so they can afford to do stem cell therapy for their loved one. It is

absolutely amazing to me that they might have found a cure for this illness, I just think about all

the family member and people who are suffering with Alzheimers or dementia and it would

bring so much happiness into there life. As much as I am eager for this I am also still really

reserved on the therapy. I agree completely with what Jason Ladock stated on the fact that stem

cell therapy needs to be more heavily researched before it is tested on humans. Although stem

cell therapy is a very promising option there needs to be much more research and studies done in

order to perfect this therapy. Although I look forward to what they develop in the future and to

see where this stem cell therapy goes and the many possibilities in has in store.
 Work Cited:

"Alzheimer disease - Stem cells treatment clinic." Alzheimer Disease treatment with stem

cells. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.

Chunmei, Y., & Naihe, J. (2015). The promise of stem cells in the therapy of Alzheimer's

disease. Translational Neurodegeneration, 4(1), 1-5. doi:10.1186/s40035-015-0029-x

Liu, A. L. (2013). Stem cell therapy for Alzheimer's disease: hype or hope?. Bioscience

Horizons: The National Undergraduate Research Journal, 61.

Krakauer, M., Welder, J. D., Pandya, H. K., Nassiri, N., & Djalilian, A. R. (2012).

Adverse Effects of Systemic Immunosuppression in Keratolimbal Allograft. Journal Of

Ophthalmology, 1-5. doi:10.1155/2012/576712

"Pros and Cons of Stem Cell Therapy." HealthGuidance.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar.

2017.

"How Much Do Stem Cell Treatments Really Cost?" The Niche. N.p., 05 May 2016.

Web. 21 Mar. 2017.

Liu, A. L. (2013). Stem cell therapy for Alzheimer's disease: hype or hope?. Bioscience

Horizons: The National Undergraduate Research Journal, 61.

Krakauer, M., Welder, J. D., Pandya, H. K., Nassiri, N., & Djalilian, A. R. (2012).

Adverse Effects of Systemic Immunosuppression in Keratolimbal Allograft. Journal Of

Ophthalmology, 1-5. doi:10.1155/2012/576712

 Advocate:

Chunmei, Y., & Naihe, J. (2015). The promise of stem cells in the therapy of Alzheimer's

disease. Translational Neurodegeneration, 4(1), 1-5. doi:10.1186/s40035-015-0029-x

Chunmei and Naihe talk about Alzheimers disease as one of the most obscure

and intractable brain disorders in medicine. They go on to say that stem cell based trials on

animals with Alzheimers disease provided very good possibilities for treatment for those with

Alzheimers disease. Its interesting because they both talk about the Basal forebrain cholinergic

neurons and the resultant cholinergic abnormalities in the brain contribute to the cognitive

decline of Alzheimers disease. Both stating, Stem Cell based therapy for repairing degenerative

brains of Alzheimers Disease is promising.

Liu, A. L. (2013). Stem cell therapy for Alzheimer's disease: hype or hope?. Bioscience

Horizons: The National Undergraduate Research Journal, 61.

Alzheimers disease is a very common neurodegenerative disease affecting

millions of people. Alzheimers disease causes cognitive impairments and memory loss that can

be saddening and devastating. The treatment for it is just temporary, it gives symptomatic relief

but no cure. Cell-replacement therapy using stem cells can be a very prominent source of

treatment for Alzheimers disease. Through many animal stem cell research and trials, they all

showed promising results and through these trials it improved their understanding of dementia
and Alzheimers disease. If everything goes well then stem cell treatment can start to be trialed

on humans within the next 5-10 years.

Ming, L., Kequan, G., & Susumu, I. (2014). Stem Cell Treatment for Alzheimer's

Disease. International Journal Of Molecular Sciences, 15(10), 19226-19238.

doi:10.3390/ijmsl51019226

International Journal of Molecular sciences talk about Alzheimers and how it is a

progressive disorder that includes dementia in older people. The Journal of Molecular sciences

goes on to say that one of the first reported Alzheimers cases was in 1907 by Alois Alzheimer.

Recent stem cell therapy has been shown to be a potential approach to various diseases,

including neurodegenerative disorders.

Preza, E., Hardy, J., Warner, T., & Wray, S. (2016). Review: Induced pluripotent stem cell

models of frontotemporal dementia. Neuropathology & Applied Neurobiology, 42(6), 497-520.

doi:10.1111/nan.12334

The article that Neuropathology and applied Neurobiology did on dementia talks

about how dementia is often times misunderstood and that Induced pluripotent stem cells

( iPSCs) have made it possible for many break throughs in dementia treatment. The induced

pluripotent stem cells have opened up many possibilities and it summaries this in the article. It

goes on to talk about the challenges and discoveries made using stem cell therapy.
 Against stem cell therapy:

Krakauer, M., Welder, J. D., Pandya, H. K., Nassiri, N., & Djalilian, A. R. (2012).

Adverse Effects of Systemic Immunosuppression in Keratolimbal Allograft. Journal Of

Ophthalmology, 1-5. doi:10.1155/2012/576712

This article done by journal of ophthalmology talks about the kerato limbal

allograft and its treatment for linbal stem cell deficiency. One of the biggest disadvantages is

systemic immunosuppression to avoid rejection. Patients have to be monitored for signs,

symptoms, or laboratory for toxicity. It can be very intense and a very difficult process.

Li, C., Qian, Y., Zhao, S., Yin, Y., & Li, J. (2016). Alginate/PEG based microcarriers with

cleavable crosslinkage for expansion and non-invasive harvest of human umbilical cord blood

mesenchymal stem cells. Materials Science & Engineering: C, 6443-53.

doi:10.1016/j.msec.2016.03.089

An article done by Material science and engineering talks about how porous

micro carriers are increasingly used to broaden and harvest stem cells. Its chemically cross-

linked alginate networks are formed during the reaction between carboxylic acid group of

alginate and determinates amine groups of cystamine. Its a cross-linked reaction and can get

mixed up and can get mixed up and can cause problems or not work at all.

https://thenextgalaxy.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-stem-cell-research/
 The number one disadvantages of stem cell therapy is the high uncertainties. Its

very risky and unknown, there is so much more research and studies that need to be done to

make it less unknown and more certain. There is always a chance that it couldnt work because

there is no positive 100% yes that is given to you when you do stem cell therapy.

Information:

Streater, A., Spector, A., Aguirre, E., Stansfeld, J., & Orrell, M. (2016). ImpRess: an

Implementation Readiness checklist developed using a systematic review of randomised

controlled trials assessing cognitive stimulation for dementia. BMC Medical Research

Methodology, 161-9. doi:10.1186/s12874-016-0268-2

This article done by BMC Medical Research Methodology focusses on the results

of clinical trials. What they do is they measure readiness for implantation and they apply it to

trials of cognitive stimulation in dementia. This study was just to show that the impress checklist

was feasible in the practice and reliable. Through this they are able to understand these studies

and they can use these checklists in the future and create a better study.

MARSA, L. (2015). Cracking the Alzheimer's Code. (Cover story). Discover, 36(2), 54-

61.

In 2008, Harvard researchers found the CD33 gene in a genome- wide dragnet.

They didnt identify what it was besides the connection between the genes in families affected by

Alzheimers. There seemed to be a direct relationship between the presence of CD33 and the

number of destructive amyloid plaque. They later discovered the CD33 is the main switch that

triggers the microglia to change from a neuroprotective to a neurotoxic function.