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Alzheimer’s Disease

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Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s is a debilitating neuropsychiatric disorder that affects the brain.

Neurons are important nerve cells that receive, process and transmit information through electrical and chemical signals in the brain. In Alzheimer’s, two types of proteins simultaneously malfunction; wreaking havoc. The protein amyloid beta begins forming clumps and plaques that impede the signal-sending capabilities of neurons while tau proteins create ‘tangles’ in the brain that cutoff nutrition from neurons causing them to die.

Alzheimer’s typically begins in the part of the brain associated with newly learned information. Early-stage symptoms manifest as difficulty remembering recent events. As the disease worsens, the patient will find it increasingly difficult to remember exact times, places and events; often resulting in confusion and frustration. They also begin experiencing disorientation, mood swings, behavioral changes and unfounded suspicion of loved ones and caregivers. It finally progresses to severe memory loss and difficulty speaking, swallowing and walking.

 

How Our Products Can Treat Alzheimer’s

We use products derived from human baby umbilical cord tissues in all our therapy programs - Wharton's Jelly MSCs (wjMSCs). The human brain is strictly regulated by the blood-brain barrier (BBB). This is a semipermeable endothelial membrane that separates blood from cerebrospinal fluid. It is a highly selective mechanism that allows only a select few types of cells, particles and molecules enter the brain. Our products are special because they can:

  • cross the endothelial brain barrier [1,2,3,4].
  • migrate to sites of injury (chemotaxis) [5,6].
  • communicate with and alter nearby cells (paracrine effect) [7,8,9].
  • encourage existing cells to self-repair (autocrine effect) [9,10,11].
  • prevent rejection by regulating the immune system (immunomodulation) [5,6,12,13,14,15,16,17,18].
  • reduce inflammation [6,17,18,19,20,21,23].
  • prevent cells from dying (apoptosis) [5,6,8,19,24].
  • transform into neurons and glia [20,24,25,26,27,28].
  • promote the formation of nerve cell axons (axogenesis) [21,22].
  • incapable of forming tumours [5,14,15,29].
  • release neuroprotective factors [8,30].
  • encourage existing cells to adapt (neuroplasticity) [31,32,33].

 

Treating Alzheimer’s

The use of products similar to ours in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease in humans is currently in the clinical trial phase. To date, there has only been one completed clinical trial. The remaining four have been registered but results and findings have yet to be posted [34,35,36,37]. In the meantime, animal models of Alzheimer’s have seen considerable success.  

The only completed study for human patients was conducted by investigators from Kunming Medical University in China. 10 vascular dementia patients, between the ages of 63 and 79, were given three intravenous infusions of wjMSCs over a 40-day period. Three months after transplantation, the patients showed significant improvements in nerve functions, early cognitive abilities and daily living abilities (washing face, brushing teeth, combing, bathing, dressing, and defecation). The disease had also been delayed and prevented from further progression. These improvements mainly manifested as improvements in short-term memory, orientation, attention, calculation and language skills. Meanwhile, it was observed that in certain patients, vision, hearing, paralysed limb muscle strength, and swallowing functions improved, as did their standing, walking, balancing, eating, sleeping, and emotional reactions. The study concludes that early intervention as well as repeated therapy session may produce better and longer-lasting results [38].      

A 2012 study funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology of Korea found that transplantation of cells derived from umbilical cord blood significantly improved spatial learning and memory decline in murine models of Alzheimer’s disease. They also noted a dramatic reduction in Alzheimer’s causing proteins and an increase of activated microglia and anti-inflammatory cytokines. They had therefore appreciably ameliorated the processes within the brain that worsen Alzheimer’s while successfully reversing cognitive decline [39].

In 2015, Yonsei University College of Medicine, South Korea treated Alzheimer’s disease in mice with neuronal progenitor cells (NPCs). They found that therapy modulated inflammation, increased activated microglia and reduced the production of tau and amyloid beta protein in the cortex and hippocampus. This, in turn, improved spatial memory [25].

Two years later, a team led by Joseph Castellano and Tony Wyss-Coray of Stanford University showed that plasma derived from umbilical cord blood possess impressive rejuvenating qualities. They found that therapy caused a boost in activity of genes encouraging neurons to grow and form new connections for learning in mice. They also noted an increase in a gene called c-Fos, which is linked to long-term memory storage and declines with age, and a protein called TIMP2 that increases synaptic adaptability and hippocampal-dependent cognition. They concluded that plasma derived from umbilical cord blood contained plasticity-enhancing proteins of high translational value for targeting ageing or diseases associated hippocampal dysfunction [40].

Researchers from Jinan, China administered cells derived from umbilical cord tissue intravenously into mice models of dementia. The mice showed significantly improved spatial learning and alleviation of memory decline. Further testing revealed that the expression of anti-inflammatory growth factors had increased thereby modulating the inflammation that causes amyloid beta (Aβ) to generate [41].

In May of 2018, another team from Yonsei University College of Medicine explored the use of cells derived from placenta and different therapy administration methods on five groups of 13 mice each. It found that the two groups treated with placental cells showed significant cognitive recovery compared to the three other groups. An analysis indicated that they had facilitated the recovery of neurotransmitter nerve cells and neurons via paracrine effects [42].

 

Cyrona’s Program

Achieving high standards in our work is of paramount importance to us. Depending on a patient’s needs, we combine our premium grade Passage 2 wjMSCs with physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and/or rehabilitative medicine. 

Learn more about our Products and Programs.

 

Why Choose Cyrona?

  • Latest cellular research and technology.
  • Unique, tailored therapy outlines.
  • Products that meet international standards.
  • Microbiology & clinical team with extensive experience in advanced medicine.
  • Board-certified physicians geared towards patient safety.
  • Fact-based information from clinical studies and trials.
  • No outlandish promises of a one-stop-cure or false improvement rates.

 

Therapy Packages

All our therapy packages come inclusive of:

 

INTERNATIONAL PATIENTS

  • Premium grade Passage 2 wjMSCs.
  • Treatment by qualified specialist(s).
  • Certificate of Analysis (CoA).
  • Airport transfer.
  • Transportation to & from therapy session(s).
  • Accommodation.
  • Hospital room for therapy.

 

LOCAL PATIENTS

  • Premium grade Passage 2 wjMSCs.
  • Treatment by qualified specialist(s).
  • Certificate of Analysis (CoA).
  • Transportation to & from therapy session(s).
  • Hospital room for therapy.

 

How Do We Proceed

All our therapies are charged based on the number of products and supplementary infusions required for the patient’s specific condition. As no two people are alike, our specialists review each patient’s medical reports before tailoring a therapy catered to addressing his or her individual needs.

You may chat with one of our Customer Care Representatives or send an e-mail detailing the patient’s condition to one of our Liaison Officers. It would expedite the process if you can provide us with:

  • Imaging results (MRI scan / CT scan / X-Ray).
  • Hematology reports (blood test).
  • Doctor’s assessment reports.
  • Pictures or videos of the patient (if relevant).

Upon getting in touch with us, a Liaison Officer evaluates and assigns the case to the specialist best equipped to treat the condition. A therapy, unique only to the patient, is drawn up and a price quoted accordingly.

Should you decide to proceed with therapy, our specialists require that all patients have Cancer Marker Screening performed in their country of residence before travelling to us for therapy. If the patient has had Cancer Marker Screening within the last 3 months, you may e-mail those results to us. In the event that the patient’s Cancer Marker Screening results are not satisfactory, our specialists will refuse to proceed with therapy. It is for this reason that we requests that patients have Cancer Marker Screening performed in their country of residence prior to travelling to us.

One week prior to arrival, a deposit payment is required in order to arrange accommodation and transportation.

Full payment is required to be made one-day prior to therapy commencement.

Post-treatment, our specialist will provide the patient with a post-treatment protocol as well as what to expect on his or her journey towards a better, and hopefully, healthier new life.

 

Kindly get in touch with us for the sources listed throughout this article.

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