Cytori Reports Benefit of Adipose Stem and Regenerative Cells in Reconstructive Surgery

Cytori Therapeutics, Inc. has announced that adipose stem and regenerative cells, when administered in combination with a fat graft, improved survival of the transplanted tissue in a preclinical study.

The study results were presented by Cytori scientist Min Zhu, M.D., at the 2006 American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) Meeting in Orlando, Florida.

"This study suggests that adipose stem and regenerative cells improve the long-term viability of soft tissue transfer, which holds promising implications for breast reconstruction, cosmetic surgery and repair of congenital defects," explained Marc H. Hedrick, M.D., President of Cytori Therapeutics.

"Fat transplantations without a stem cell supplement often lead to partial survival of the transplanted tissue."

"Our findings show that the vascularization imparted by a stem cell supplement is likely a major contributor to increased tissue survival and volume retention."

"We look forward to evaluating this approach clinically in reconstructive surgery in the safety and feasibility study that was recently initiated using Cytori's Celution™ System."

In the reported preclinical study, fat tissue transfers were performed in 30 animals, which were divided into three groups of ten that were evaluated at one, three and six months.

A supplement of adipose stem and regenerative cells were injected into the grafts of half of the animals in each group. After one and three months, no differences in weight or morphology were observed.

After six months, a statistically significant, three-times greater weight retention was observed in the grafts injected with adipose stem and regenerative cells compared to the grafts from the control group.