Risk factors of CMV infection in patients after umbilical cord blood transplantation: a multicenter study in China

Objective： This retrospective study examined risk factors for cytomegalovirus （CMV） infection after umbilical cord blood transplantation （UCBT） and the impact of CMV infection on patient survival. Methods： In all 176 patients, plasma CMV DNA was negative prior to the transplantation, and examined twice a week for 100 d, and then once weekly for additional 300 d. Preemptive antiviral therapy （ganciclovir or foscarnet） was started in patients with 〉 1,000/mL copies of CMV DNA but no full-blown CMV disease, and was discontinued upon two consecutive negative reports of blood CMV DNA test. The survival and risk factors for CMV infection or disease were examined using logistic regression. Results： CMV infection developed in 71% （125/176） of the patients, with a median onset of 32 d. Four patients （2.3%） developed CMV disease. Neither the 5-year overall survival （OS） nor event-free survival （EFS） differed significantly in infected patients vs. those with no infection （59.4% vs. 64.8%, P=0.194; 53.4% vs. 59.1%, P=0.226）. A stepwise multivariate analysis indicated an association of CMV infection with age, high-dose glucocorticoids, the number of transplanted CD34^＋ cells, and the number of platelet transfusion, but not with gender, the conditioning regimen, and the day of neutrophil recovery and chronic graft-versus- host disease （cGVHD）. Conclusions： CMV infection is very common after UCBT, but does not seem to affect long-term survival with preemptive antiviral treatment.

Vein transplantation using human umbilical cord blood stem cells in the treatment of stroke sequela

BACKGROUND: Transplanted mononuclear cell (MNC) of umbilical blood can survive in central nervous system (CNS) of host through blood brain barrier, differentiate into nerve cells, migrate to damaged site and integrate morphological structure and function with nerve cells of host so as to improve deficiencies of sensatory function, motor function and cognitive function and influence on stroke sequela. OBJECTIVE: To observe the vein transplantation of human umbilical cord blood stem cells (HUCBSC) for improving neurological function, limb function and activity of daily living of patients with stroke and evaluate the reliability. DESIGN: Self-controlled study. SETTING: Department of Neurosurgery, the Second People's Hospital of Zhengzhou City; Red-crossed Blood Center of Henan Province; Department of Neurosurgery, the Fist Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 10 patients with stroke sequela were selected from Department of Cerebral Surgery, the Second People's Hospital of Zhengzhou City from April to December 2005. There were 9 males and 1 female aged from 35 to 75 years with the mean age of 56 years. All of them were diagnosed with CT and MRI examination and coincidence with diagnostic criteria of stroke established by the Fourth National Academic Meeting for Cerebrovascular Disease. All patients provided informed consent. METHODS: 80-140 mL umbilical blood of term birth of newborn was selected hermetically and maintained in sterile plastic bag. And then, the blood was centrifugated at the speed of 1 500 r/min for 30 minutes at 22 ℃ in order to separate MNC, i.e., HUCBSC. In addition, after final diagnosis during hospitalization, stroke patients were perfused with HUCBSC through superficial vein of back of the hand. Each patient was averagely perfused with 6 portions of HUCBSC (cellular numbers ≥ 1×108/portion) and the interval between each portion was 1-7 days with the mean interval of 4 days. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: ① Neurological function of stroke patients was evaluated with neurological function deficiency (NFD) before treatment and at 3 months after treatment. The scale includes consciousness, level fix function, facial paralysis, language, muscle force of upper limbs, muscle force of lower limb and step function. The total scores ranged from 0 to 45; meanwhile, the lower the scores were, the better the neurological function was. ② Motor function of injured limbs was evaluated with Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA), including motor function of upper limbs, motor function of lower limbs, balance ability, sensory function and motion of joint. The total scores ranged from 0 to 226; meanwhile, the higher the scores were, the better the motor function of limbs was. ③ Activities of daily living (ADL) was evaluated with Barthel Index (BI), including having meals, taking a bath, dressing oneself, putting on clothes, walking in balance and stair activity. The total scores ranged from 0 to 100; meanwhile, the higher the scores were, the stronger the ADL was. RESULTS: A total of 10 patients were involved in the final analysis. After treatment, NFD of stroke patients was (10.9±5.09) points, which was lower than that before treatment [(25.4±6.09) points, t =8.213, P < 0.01]. In addition, after treatment, FMA and BI of stroke patients were (80.9±25.00) points and (81.1±15.93) points, respectively, which were higher than those before treatment [(31.9±21.85) points, (36.2±19.41) points, t =13.024, 13.670, P < 0.01]. Immuno-suppressive drugs were not used during the whole therapeutic procedure; moreover, immunological rejection and allergic reaction were not observed during the same period. CONCLUSION: Transplanting HUCBSC through superficial vein of back of the hand is regarded as a simple and safe method for the treatment of stroke sequela.

Editor's Choice——Umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cell differentiation and transplantation in neural regeneration

Previous in vivo experiments have shown that human umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cells can promote the proliferation and differentiation of damaged celts, and help to repair damaged sites, Recent studies have reported that umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells can differentiate into neurons and glial cells. Recent studies have reported that the repair mechanisms underlying cord blood stern cells involve the replacement of damaged cells and mediation of the local micro-environment.

Combined use of Y-tube conduits with human umbilical cord stem cells for repairing nerve bifurcation defects

Given the anatomic complexity at the bifurcation point of a nerve trunk,enforced suturing between stumps can lead to misdirection of nerve axons,thereby resulting in adverse consequences.We assumed that Y-tube conduits injected with human umbilical cord stem cells could be an effective method to solve such problems,but studies focused on the best type of Y-tube conduit remain controversial.Therefore,the present study evaluated the applicability and efficacy of various types of Y-tube conduits containing human umbilical cord stem cells for treating rat femoral nerve defects on their bifurcation points.At 12 weeks after the bridging surgery that included treatment with different types of Y-tube conduits,there were no differences in quadriceps femoris muscle weight or femoral nerve ultrastructure.However,the Y-tube conduit group with longer branches and a short trunk resulted in a better outcome according to retrograde labeling and electrophysiological analysis.It can be concluded from the study that repairing a mixed nerve defect at its bifurcation point with Y-tube conduits,in particular those with long branches and a short trunk,is effective and results in good outcomes.

Long-term outcomes in adults with leukemia treated with transplantation of two unrelated umbilical cord blood units

Background Wide application of umbilical cord blood transplantation （UCBT） in adult patients is limited by low cell-dose available in one umbilical cord blood （UCB） unit. The aim of this study was to investigate the safety and long-term outcomes of UCBT from unrelated donors in adult and adolescent patients with leukemia. Methods Thirteen patients with leukemia received double-unit UCBT with human leukocyte antigen （HLA） mismatched at 0-2 loci. We analyzed the engraftment, graft-versus-host disease （GVHD） and survival. Results Twelve evaluable patients （92.3%） had neutrophil and platelet engraftment at a median of 21 days （range, 16-38 days） and 34 days （range, 25-51 days）, respectively. At day 30, engraftment was derived from one donor in 8 patients （66.7%, 95% Cl 40.0%-93.4%）, and from both donors in 4 patients （33.3%, 95% CI 6.7%-60.0%） with 1 unit predominated. Unit with larger nucleated cell （NC） dose would predominate in engraftment （P=-0.039）, whereas CD34~ cell dose or HLA-match failed to demonstrate any relationship with unit predominance. Only one patient developed grade II acute graft-versus-host disease （aGVHD）. Chronic GVHD （cGVHD） was observed in 2 of 11 patients who survived more than 100 days, and both were limited. The median follow-up after transplantation for the 13 patients was 45 months （range 1.5-121.0 months） and 72 months （range 41.0-121.0 months） for the 8 alive and with full donor chimerism. The 5-year cumulative disease free survival （DFS） was （61.5±13.5）%. Of the 13 patients, 5 patients died in 1 year and 1-year transplantation related mortality （TRM） was 23.1% （95% Cl 0.2%-46.0%）. Conclusion Double-unit UCBT from unrelated donors with HLA-mismatched at 0-2 loci may overcome the cell-dose barrier and be feasible for adults and adolescents with leukemia.

Transplantation of human umbilical cord-derived endothelial progenitor cells promotes re-endothelialization of the injured carotid artery after balloon injury in New Zealand white rabbits

Background Cell transplantation has great potential for promoting endothelial repair and reducing the complications of percutaneous coronary intervention （PCI）. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of transplantation of human umbilical cord blood endothelial progenitor ceils （EPCs） on injured arteries. Methods Umbilical cord blood mononuclear cells were obtained from post-partum lying-in women, and EPCs were isolated, cultured, expanded and identified by immunofiuorescence. The carotid arterial endothelium of New Zealand white rabbits was injured by dilatation with a 3F balloon, and the EPCs were injected into the lumen of the injured artery in the transplanted group （n=16）, while an equal volume of phosphated buffered saline （PBS） was injected into the control group after balloon injury （n=16）. The animals were sacrificed after either 2 or 4 weeks, and the grafted cells were identified by double immunofluorescence staining with human nuclear antigen （HNA） and CD31 antibodies. Arterial cross sections were analyzed by pathology, immunohistochemisty and morphometry to evaluate the reparative effects of EPCs. Proliferating cell nuclear antigen （PCNA） and transforming growth factor （TGF）-131 mRNA expression were detected by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction （RT-PCR）. Results Fluorescence-labeled EPCs were found in the neointima. The neointimal area and the neointimal/medial area ratio were significantly lower in the transplanted group than in the control group （P 〈0.05）. von Willebrand factor （vWF） immunohistostaining showed more VWF-positive cells in the transplanted animals than in the controls （8.75±2.92 vs. 4.50±1.77, P 〈0.05）. Compared with the control group, the transplanted group had lower expression of PCNA mRNA （0.67±0.11 vs. 1.25±0.40, P 〈0.01 ）and higher expression of TGF-β1 mRNA （1.10±0.21 vs. 0.82±0.07, P 〈0.05）. Conclusions EPCs derived from human umbilical cord blood were successfully transplanted into injured vessels. The transplanted EPCs inhibited neointimal hyperplasia and promoted vascular re-endothelialization.