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Cell Therapy Center Advances Immunotherapies For Clinical Application

New mothers at Hutzel Hospital can donate umbilical cords to the Karmanos Cancer Institute, where hematopoietic stem cells are banked for use in bone-marrow transplants for patients with life-threatening blood disorders.

Cellular therapies are showing great promise in many areas, including: graft engineering bonemarrow and stem-cell transplants; expansion of umbilical-cord-derived blood forming stem cells for use in adults; various immunologic treatments of cancer; replacement therapy in osteoporosis and possible acceleration of wound healing. In an effort to develop and optimize cellbased therapies, the Center for Cell Therapy has been established as a joint venture between Wayne State University, the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute and Aastrom Biosciences Inc. Hoping to bring new cell therapy-based disease treatments to patients quickly, safely and efficiently, the center will facilitate training, conduct pilot and pivotal clinical trials, pursue licensing of collateral technologies and facilitate commercialization of the manufacturing processes for cell therapies.

A major complementary aspect of the project is the J.P. McCarthy Cord Stem Cell Bank, which has been developed as a partnership with Hutzel Hospital and the American Red Cross to collect and store voluntarily donated umbilical cords, which contain hematopoietic stem cells for transplantation. The bank then stores stem cells for use in bone-marrow transplants for patients with lifethreatening blood disorders, including leukemia, lymphoma and sickle-cell anemia. “This cord banking project is particularly important for minority populations, who frequently have difficulty finding appropriately matched marrow donors,” said Dr. Roy Baynes, director of bone-marrow transplantation at Karmanos, the umbilical-cord bank and the cell-therapy center.

Within the Center for Cell Therapy, Aastrom- Replicell™ devices are being used to expand the supply of stem cells derived from umbilical- cord blood using good manufacturing processes (GMP) for transplantation. The Replicell platform is also being used for the production of defined dendritic cell populations, which can then be activated to serve as cellular vaccines against cancer as well as a platform for GMP production of mesenchymal stem cells.

“Not only will the center conduct pivotal trials, which may be of major therapeutic value for patients, particularly minorities in the Michigan Life Sciences Corridor, but successful manufacture, licensing and commercialization will also provide high-technology sector economic growth, creation of new high-technology employment opportunities and significantly enhance the scientific profile of the region and respective organizations,” Dr. Baynes said.

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