March 2020 - The Niche

Deconstructing Rudy Giuliani ‘stem cells for COVID-19’ podcast & NK cell transplant idea

March 31, 2020 February 1, 2021 / By Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 14 Comments

Robert-Hariri-talking-with-Rudy-Giuliani-on-testing-22stem-cells22-for-COVID19.

Rudy Giuliani has been tweeting all kinds of wild things about the novel coronavirus and is apparently very excited about the idea of “stem cells” for COVID-19 patients. What could go wrong, right? Giuliani starts vaguely tweeting about “stem cells” I wrote a few days ago about how Giuliani had been plugging an upcoming podcast …

Deconstructing Rudy Giuliani ‘stem cells for COVID-19’ podcast & NK cell transplant idea Read More »

Rudy Giuliani now plugging unproven stem cells for COVID19: is Trump next?

March 27, 2020 February 1, 2021 / By Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 8 Comments

Things are getting worse with the COVID19 pandemic and in parallel there is increasing hype including from clinics that somehow stem cells or similar products could help with the latest (and most worrisome) development being a bombshell tweet from Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani. The former mayor of New York and Trump frontman just tweeted this …

Rudy Giuliani now plugging unproven stem cells for COVID19: is Trump next? Read More »

As clinics buzz about coronavirus, COVID19 patient given non-FDA-approved exosomes?

March 26, 2020 February 1, 2021 / By Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 4 Comments

Kimera-Labs-exosomes-COVID-19-novel-coronavirus-disease

When the number of stem cell clinical studies and trials listed for COVID-19 first started spiraling upward it seemed likely that stem cell clinics and other firms in that arena would get interested. I thought that we’d see the unproven regenerative medicine coronavirus bandwagon quickly grow. Unfortunately, there are reasons to be increasingly concerned here. For instance, …

As clinics buzz about coronavirus, COVID19 patient given non-FDA-approved exosomes? Read More »

‘Captain Kirk’ regenerative clinic supplier Invitrx gets long FDA warning letter

March 22, 2020 April 27, 2024 / By Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 7 Comments

Should we call it stem cell synchronicity for stem cell supplier firm Invitrx? What was it about March 16? Sometimes strange things happen in the stem cell world such as last week on March 16 I wrote that the FDA needs to do more about unproven exosomes, and then on the same day a new FDA warning …

‘Captain Kirk’ regenerative clinic supplier Invitrx gets long FDA warning letter Read More »

Patient Q&A#2: Are autoimmune or stem cell transplant patients at higher risk from COVID-19?

March 18, 2020 February 27, 2021 / By Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 4 Comments

I’m continuing my stem cell patient Q&A series and today’s Q&A#2 post is focused on whether autoimmune patients generally or specifically those who have received chemo and hematopoietic stem cell transplants (HSCT) are at higher risk from COVID-19? Multiple patients have asked me this. It’s a great question and obviously urgent right now during the …

Patient Q&A#2: Are autoimmune or stem cell transplant patients at higher risk from COVID-19? Read More »

FDA needs to act boldly on unproven exosome therapies

March 16, 2020 February 1, 2021 / By Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 3 Comments

The FDA needs to do more about clinics and suppliers of unproven “exosome therapies.” Dubious exosomes are sadly just the newest gimmick for some firms in the stem cell/regenerative medicine clinic arena right now. They are available at many stem cell and other clinics right now, but who knows what’s in the syringe? Also, people …

FDA needs to act boldly on unproven exosome therapies Read More »

Liveyon is back (again) with unproven exosome product

March 12, 2020 July 20, 2021 / By Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 11 Comments

Remember our old friends Liveyon? Their leader John Kosolcharoen? Liveyon’s continuing metamorphosis This biologics supply firm has gone through several stages of corporate metamorphosis as a supplier of biologics including at first a purported living umbilical cord stem cell product. That stem cell thrust ultimately landed a dozen or more people in the hospital as …

Liveyon is back (again) with unproven exosome product Read More »

Athersys & Mesoblast stem cells for COVID-19?

March 10, 2020 February 1, 2021 / By Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 7 Comments

Could two stem cell biotechs Athersys and Mesoblast help in the battle against the novel coronavirus disease COVID-19? Stem cells, ARDS, and COVID-19 I’ve already written two pieces about the idea of using stem cells to battle COVID-19 (here and here), the sometimes fatal disease that arises from infection with the novel coronavirus. Older patients …

Athersys & Mesoblast stem cells for COVID-19? Read More »

Regenerative medicine recommended reads including $191 million to researcher

March 8, 2020 June 8, 2022 / By Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 4 Comments

Mark-Pennesi-CRISPR-regenerative-medicine-eye

It’s notable how the FDA now considers gene-editing a kind of regenerative medicine. This means that various gene therapy products in development technically qualify as regenerative therapies. Ever since the agency began its rapidly growing regenerative medicine advanced therapy (RMAT) designation program, we’ve seen an increasing number of gene therapy biotechs and products qualify as …

Regenerative medicine recommended reads including $191 million to researcher Read More »

Month: March 2020