Derby City Area Chapter of the National Spinal Cord Injury Association
ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION
The Derby City Area Chapter of the N.S.C.I.A. is a membership organization for individuals with spinal cord injuries, their families, and health professionals. Founded in 1984 as a Charter Member of the N.S.C.I.A., it was incorporated under IRS Section 501 (c) 3 as a not for profit organization. The Board of Directors consists of the Officers, Past President and the Board Members At Large.
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OFFICERS
PRESIDENT David Allgood - (502) 589-6620
VICE PRESIDENT Adam Ford - (502) 425-2206
TREASURER Tom Stokes- (502) 957-5865
LIAISON TO FRAZIER INSTITUTE Dr. Bill Kraft – (502) 582-5865
FUNDRAISING CHAIR Betty Perry—(502) 647-0368
CORRESPONDING SECRETARY/WEB MASTER Michael Feger- (502) 647-0368
PAST PRESIDENT Adam Ford- (502) 425-2206
BOARD MEMBERS AT LARGE- Mike Perry Kelly Young
NSCIA DERBY CITY CHAPTER NEWSLETTER
Editor- Barbara Davis
Contributor- David Allgood
Visit Our Website at www.DerbyCitySpinalCord.org
UofL’S DISCOVERY (Cont’d)
“This is a very important first step,” said Scott Whittmore, scientific director of UofL’s Kentucky Spinal Cord Injury Research Center. However, Whittemore said that “there are some major issues that need to be resolved before you can think about” translating Ratajczak’s research into medical treatments.
Ratajczak announced some of his findings yesterday at the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology in Atlanta. His team also plans to present a paper today showing that the type of cells it has identified—called “very small embryonic-like” or VSEL—mobilize into the bloodstream to help repair damaged tissue after a stroke in mice.
Although treatments based on the team’s discovery are most likely years off, the research could hold promise for such conditions as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and Parkinson’s disease. Using a patient’s own VSELs could eliminate the danger of rejection that could exist with donor stem cells.
Some local residents with diseases that could be treated based on the discovery are optimistic. More immediately, the discovery could boost disease research, said Gayle Zoeller, a 61-year-old Louisville resident with Parkinson’s disease. “I guess we would get a lot more funding,” said Zoeller, who has worked with the nonprofit fundraising group Parkinson Alliance. “You wouldn’t have to fight Congress.” And the possibility of more research gives her hope.
“The more study that’s going on,” she said, “eventually something’s going to work.” Doctors and researchers have been extremely interested in stem cells because they have the potential to develop into many types of cells in the body.
Embryonic stem cells are able to give rise to any type of cell except those needed to develop a fetus, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Although the potential for adult stem cells has been thought to be more limited, the use of embryonic stem cells has been controversial because it involves the destruction of embryos, which opponents say amounts to destroying human life.
“Specifically, embryonic stem cells are derived from embryos that develop from eggs that have been fertilized in vitro—in an in vitro fertilization clinic—and then donated for research purposes with the informed consent of the donors,” according to a stem cell primer from the National Institutes of Health.
In 2001, President Bush restricted federal funding of research to existing lines of cells developed from embryos.
