Process for making hepatocytes from pluripotent stem cells
Patent Number: 7,256,042
This patent covers methods of differentiating embryonic stem cells into hepatocytes. Hepatocytes are very attractive since they can be used as a single cell therapy for restoring cirrhotic livers.
The patent covers the use of the differentiation agents:sodium butyrate, n-butyric acid, trichosratin A, propionic acid, isobutyric acid, and isovaleric acid for generating hepatocytes.
The patent describes the hepatocyte lineage as expressing: albumin, antitrypsin,alpha getoprotein, asialoglycoprotein receptor, ability to store glycogen, cytochrome p450 activity, glucose-6-phosphatase activity and morphological features of hepatocytes.
The patent also covers the initiation of differentiation using agents such as dimethyl sulfoxide, dimethylacetamide, hexamethylene bisacetamide, or other polymethylene bisacetamide. Additionally, the "focusing" of differentiation of the embryonic stem cells into the hepatic lineage is disclosed using agents such as glucocorticoids, epidermal growth factor, insulin, TGF alpha and beta, fibroblast growth factor, hepatocyte growth factor, IL-1, IL-6, IGF-I, IGF-II, and HBGF-1.
View this patent on the USPTO website.
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2 Comments | Add Comment
Joseph Tucker said...
You should investigate the possibility of bone marrow stem cell administration. Combined with appropriate antivirals there is an opportunity. Have you seen the clinical studies using bone marrow administered intravenously
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Mary Price said...
As I am reading this, my hands are shaking. I have 4+ cirrhoses of the liver. I also have hepititis C which I obtained from a needle stick sometime during my career as a nurse. My questions are: If it is possible to use stem cells to regenerate my liver, is it also possible to eradicate the Hep C and if not would I still be able to benefit from the hepatocytes for my liver?