NurOwn, a stem cell therapy being developed by BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics, showed a good safety profile among people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) in an open-label Phase 2 clinical trial, according to new data.
The data show the experimental therapy also was associated with promising effects on patients’ walking ability, finger dexterity, cognition, and vision.
This trial “provides preliminary evidence of NurOwn’s potential to modify functional outcomes in progressive MS, which we believe warrants further study,” Ralph Kern, MD, president and chief medical officer of BrainStorm, said in a company press release.
Bruce Bebo, executive vice president of research at the National MS Society, which funded the study along with Brainstorm, noted the “high unmet need for better treatments for progressive forms of MS.”
"We look forward to future studies that will help to fully understand the potential of NurOwn and other cell-based therapies for this hard-to-treat form of disease,” Bebo said.
The trial’s top-line results were announced last year. The full data have now been published in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal, in the study “Evaluation of neurotrophic factor secreting mesenchymal stem cells in progressive multiple sclerosis.” New data on NurOwn
The NurOwn platform involves harvesting mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from a patient’s own bone marrow. MSCs are stem cells that can generate a variety of other cell types. These cells are then expanded and matured in the lab into cells that produce high levels of molecules — called neurotrophic factors or NTFs — that promote nerve cell growth and survival.
The mature cells, called MSC-NTF cells, are then injected into the patient’s spinal canal. Scientists note that using a patient’s own cells minimizes the risk of an immune reaction, as might occur with cells from a donor. NurOwn is expected to promote the repair of myelin, the protective sheath around nerve fibers that is lost in MS. It use also aims to lessen the likelihood of further nerve cell damage, reduce neuroinflammation, and potentially slow MS progression. The Phase 2 trial, called BCT-101 (NCT03799718), launched in 2019 and involved 20 adults with progressive forms of MS. All were able to walk 25 feet in one minute or less, and had experienced no relapses in the prior six months. Participants were recruited at four MS academic centers in the U.S.
Complete story including benefits: https://multiplesclerosisnewstoday.c...eases-fatigue/
The data show the experimental therapy also was associated with promising effects on patients’ walking ability, finger dexterity, cognition, and vision.
This trial “provides preliminary evidence of NurOwn’s potential to modify functional outcomes in progressive MS, which we believe warrants further study,” Ralph Kern, MD, president and chief medical officer of BrainStorm, said in a company press release.
Bruce Bebo, executive vice president of research at the National MS Society, which funded the study along with Brainstorm, noted the “high unmet need for better treatments for progressive forms of MS.”
"We look forward to future studies that will help to fully understand the potential of NurOwn and other cell-based therapies for this hard-to-treat form of disease,” Bebo said.
The trial’s top-line results were announced last year. The full data have now been published in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal, in the study “Evaluation of neurotrophic factor secreting mesenchymal stem cells in progressive multiple sclerosis.” New data on NurOwn
The NurOwn platform involves harvesting mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from a patient’s own bone marrow. MSCs are stem cells that can generate a variety of other cell types. These cells are then expanded and matured in the lab into cells that produce high levels of molecules — called neurotrophic factors or NTFs — that promote nerve cell growth and survival.
The mature cells, called MSC-NTF cells, are then injected into the patient’s spinal canal. Scientists note that using a patient’s own cells minimizes the risk of an immune reaction, as might occur with cells from a donor. NurOwn is expected to promote the repair of myelin, the protective sheath around nerve fibers that is lost in MS. It use also aims to lessen the likelihood of further nerve cell damage, reduce neuroinflammation, and potentially slow MS progression. The Phase 2 trial, called BCT-101 (NCT03799718), launched in 2019 and involved 20 adults with progressive forms of MS. All were able to walk 25 feet in one minute or less, and had experienced no relapses in the prior six months. Participants were recruited at four MS academic centers in the U.S.
Complete story including benefits: https://multiplesclerosisnewstoday.c...eases-fatigue/