What Are Stem Cells?
Stem cells have the potential to develop into many different cell types in the body during early life and growth. In many tissues they serve as an internal repair system, dividing essentially without limit to replenish other cells as long as the person or animal is still alive. When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the potential either to remain a stem cell or become another type of cell with a more specialized function, such as a muscle cell, a red blood cell, or a brain cell.
Your supply of stem cells naturally falls with age. This makes it harder for the body to repair damage, and can lead to inflammation. Inflammation, in turn, undergirds many of the problems we associate with old age, including frailty, heart disease, immune weakness, and Alzheimer’s.
Where Do Stem Cells Come From?
At The Hormone Zone, we use Stem Cells and other related cellular and a cellular products, derived from tissue from donated placentas, produced and highly regulated by one of the best manufactures in the US, run by top scientists in the field. Stem Cells and their related products (i.e. cytokines and growth factors) come from donated placentas from highly screened women, from live, healthy births. Stem Cells and their products are obtained from donors through the most stringent selection criteria. Donating mothers have been followed by their ob/gyn, and are required to go through testing. Before time of birth, they are asked if they would like to have the baby’s umbilical cord stored. 90% of the mother choose not to. At that point they are asked if they would like to donate the birth tissue. If they say yes, they are required to fill out extensive questionnaires (89 questions), which screen for infectious disease exposures, alcohol/drug/smoking or other toxic exposures, medication use, travel history, any family history of heritable and non-heritable diseases, cancer, autoimmune diseases, blood disorder, etc., as well as any prenatal test abnormality of the baby.
Donated birth tissue goes through infectious disease testing before it is accepted by the laboratory. Upon arrival of the birth tissue at the laboratory, it is screened again for infectious diseases such as Hepatitis, syphilis and HIV. In addition, prior to being allowed to be used clinically, the finished products go through further testing, to ensure quality and sterility.
Specifically, the tissue is screened for the following:
- HIV I/II Ab: Human Immunodeficiency Virus Types ½ and O Antibody HIV/ HCV/HBV NAT:
- Human Immunodeficiency/Hepatitis C/B
- HBc Ab: Hepatitis B Core Antibody HBx Ag: Hepatitis B viral protein RPR/STS or Equivalent: Syphilis
- HCV Ab: Hepatitis C Virus
- HTLV I/II: Human T-Cell Lymphotropic Virus
Umbilical cord tissue is a rich source of stem cells that are similar to those found in the bone marrow and have the ability to differentiate.
What Are Some of the Conditions That Stem Cells Treat?
When damage occurs and the body needs to come up with a new supply of cells to heal itself, it relies on the stem cell’s ability to quickly create more cells to repair the wound. Herein lays the potential for the introduction of new stem cells to enhance or be the driving factor in the healing process.
MSCs have the following properties:
FOUNDATION FOR REGENERATION: The placenta and its components contains Collagens I, III, IV, V, VI, VII, fibrous proteins that provide a structural scaffold to support cellular migration. Fibronectin, integrins, laminins, and hyaluronons also play a key role in proliferation, differentiation and adherence to the scaffold.
MODULATE CORRECT TISSUE REPAIR: Growth factors contained placenta include PDGF, VEGF, EGF, FGF and TGF-B, support cell proliferation and migration across the defect. This combination of proteins works with the body’s own cells to modulate correct tissue reconstruction rather than scar tissue.
REGULATE INFLAMMATION, SCARRING & PAIN: Birth tissue products have been shown to reduce inflammation, fibrous tissue growth, and potential scar tissue formation.
NON-IMMUNOGENIC: Birth tissue-derived stem cell products are ‘immune-privileged’, possessing little or no risk of foreign body reaction, which can lead to fibrosis and graft failure.
ANTI-MICROBIAL: Application of birth tissue products has been shown to reduce bacteria counts in the wound, demonstrated against a wide range of bacteria.
Stem Cell Therapy has promise in treating:
- Immune-related diseases
- Inflammatory-related diseases
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Osteoarthritis
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Inflammatory Bowel Disease
- Inflammatory Airway and Pulmonary Diseases
- Neurological conditions
- Parkinson’s disease
- Alzheimer’s disease
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Cardiovascular disease
Is There Research on Using Stem Cells?
Yes. There is a lot of research about Stem Cells and their ability to help with disease. Stem Cells were first discovered in the 1950s and have been studied extensively since then.
At The Hormone Zone, our key objective is to combat the negatives of aging. Here are two studies on Stem Cells that specifically shows the benefits in the elderly:
- Allogeneic Human Mesenchymal Stem Cell Infusions for Aging Frailty
- Allogeneic Mesenchymal Stem Cells Ameliorate Aging Frailty: A Phase II Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial
To understand more about the overall research about Stem Cell rejuvenation, explore this review article.
Is Stem Cell Rejuvenation Safe?
Stem Cell rejuvenation is extremely safe. Any type of reaction to administering Stem Cells and their related products is extremely rare and is only mild to moderate if it does occur. These reactions are limited to a local reaction to the fluid going into the vein and a possibility of a mild immune reaction. But for the most part, the immune system does not react to these stem cells because it does not recognize them. Most cells in the body express a protein called MHC class II on their surface, which acts like a flag to alert the body to something foreign. In an organ transplant, the patient’s MHC class II has to match the donor’s to reduce chances of rejection. But these Stem Cells do not have these flags. You should note that the two studies on Stem Cells and Frailty cited in the question above found no adverse effects at all.
Do Stem Cells Survive the Implantation Process?
One of the potential concerns about using cryopreserved MSCs is whether the cells survive both the preservation process and whether they then survive the implantation into the patient.
Here are some unique properties about MSCs:*
- The tissue that surrounds the early MSCs do not have mature lymphocytes and therefore, the immune system of the patient receiving the MSCs can not recognize and do not subject the MSCs as a “foreign” invader and do not attack, therefore graft- versus-host disease (i.e. rejection) is not possible at all.
- MSCs survive preservation and implantation because they are tolerant to hypoxia (death from no oxygen) because of glycolysis (formation of glucose for energy); therefore, ischemic lesions at time of manipulations in vitro do not exert effects on their viability.
- MSCs mostly do not have long processes or strong cell-cell adhesion and are less vulnerable to trauma at the time of preparing and preserving the cells, leading to higher cell viability compared to adult stem cells after a process of cryopreservation and use of FSCs in suspensions for injection.
*Smikodub OI (2005) Method of treatment of people with embryonic cell suspensions. Patent, Ukraine
What Are the FDA Rules Associated With Stem Cell Allografts?
Stem Cell product allografts are classified under the FDA federal code 21 CFR 1273.3 (c) (f) HCT/P “minimally manipulated product”. The manufacturers that we partner with are properly registered under these codes and currently hold all the necessary registrations and licensing under that category including holding a Tissue Bank license. It is important to note that UCB allografts are NOT categorized as drugs under the FDA Title 21. We have additional supportive information regarding these rules directly from the FDA.
What Are the Treatment Options for Stem Cell Product Allografts That You Offer at the Hormone Zone?
Stem Cells & Exosomes for the O and P Shots: In both the O Shot (Orgasm Shot for women) and the P Shot (Priapus Shot for men) procedures, we utilize growth factors from your own blood called Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP). We also have added both MSCs and the regenerative growth factors called Exosomes to enhance the benefits. The growth factors provide “signaling” and communication to the Stem Cells that are administered as well as to your own stem cells. This helps to regenerate the injected tissue (in this case the genitalia) even more. The MSCs and exosomes further enhance the regeneration, healing and repair.
Stem Cells for Skin Rejuvenation: The same Stem Cells and related products that we have here at The Hormone Zone can be used in our world famous Vampire Facelift and Vampire Facial procedures that are already very good at improving facial skin quality. The addition of Stem Cell products to your “problem areas” simply makes the results more effective.
Stem Cell allograft IV (intravenous) and IM (intramuscular) Rejuvenation: One of the most promising regenerative treatments is the administering of the potent stem cells via a simple IV (Intravenous) or IM (intramuscular) procedure. In this very potent, but simple process that takes minutes to administer, the patient receives millions of the regenerative Stem Cells and the related regenerative acellular products.
