Amag says cord blood cells improve motor function in some with cerebral palsy

Cord Blood Registry, or CBR, from AMAG Pharmaceuticals (AMAG) announced research recently published in the journal Stem Cells Translational Medicine found that children with cerebral palsy who received an infusion of their own neo-natal cord blood, collected & stored at birth, saw improved motor function and brain connectivity one year after treatment, when receiving a high cell dose.

The blood within a newborn baby’s umbilical cord contains young stem cells that can renew themselves and become specialized. These cord blood stem cells have been proven in treatment to help children replace damaged blood cells with healthy ones and strengthen their immune systems.

The prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 2 clinical study examining the efficacy of autologous cord blood in treating children with cerebral palsy was led by researchers at Duke University.

“The study results are compelling for further study of the use of autologous blood cord infusions in children with cerebral palsy,” said Joanne Kurtzberg, M.D., the study’s principal investigator and director of the Carolinas Cord Blood Bank and The Duke Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Program.

Dr. Kurtzberg is also chief scientific officer of the Robertson Clinical and Translational Cell Therapy Program at Duke University.

Following a Phase 1 study which showed the use of autologous cord blood to be safe in children with neurologic disorders, the aim of the Phase 2 trial was to determine efficacy using autologous cord blood for treatment of cerebral palsy in pediatric patients ages one through six. Improvement in the study was measured using the Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM-66), a standardized assessment to evaluate motor function (e.g. walking ability).

More than one-third of the children in this study—or 22 out of 63 total study participants—had their cord blood preserved at birth with CBR. The results of this study highlight the need for continued research of autologous cord blood infusions to treat cerebral palsy. CBR is partnering with research institutions to support FDA-regulated clinical trials investigating the use of cord blood in regenerative medicine applications across a wide variety of conditions, including autism, acquired hearing loss, and two clinical trials on cerebral palsy at Augusta University and The University of Texas Health Sciences Center.

AMAG closed at $13.05.

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