CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR THERAPY

Cells, as fundamental building blocks, are an important component of regenerative medicine, whether used with scaffolds to engineer implantable tissues or injected to achieve desired cellular function. Reliable cell culture and expansion systems are required to be able to utilize cells for therapeutic applications. The Institute’s research teams have developed systems that allow cell expansion in large quantities in a matter of weeks. Cells from various sources have been studied to achieve optimal therapeutic outcomes. Targeted modification of cells in culture allows for the achievement of better performance for specific clinical applications.


For example, one of the obstacles encountered in applying cell-based therapies is achieving adequate vascularization to large engineered tissues. Proteins such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) are used to promote the growth of blood vessels to provide vital nutrients and oxygen to body tissues. The gene encoding for VEGF can be inserted into cells to enhance vascular function.

Stem cells are also an attractive cell source, since they possess the ability to become various tissue types. The Institute’s Cellular and Molecular Therapy team, led by Shay Soker, Ph.D., has established stem cell isolation, expansion and differentiation systems for guiding the cells into numerous cell types, including bone, fat, muscle, liver, pancreatic, nerve and endothelial cells. The team has demonstrated that stem-cell-derived cells are able to maintain their normal functional characteristics through in vitro and in vivo studies. The team is using bioinformatic tools to characterize genetic changes during stem cell differentiation.

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