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BGU Develops New Stem Cell Method for Boys With Cancer

BGU Develops New Stem Cell Method for Boys With Cancer

June 18, 2018

Medical Research, Press Releases

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) and Soroka University Medical Center researchers in Beer-Sheva, Israel are developing a cell culture system that for the first time can change testicular stem cells into sperm-like cells that may enable future fertility for boys with prepubertal cancer.

Aggressive chemotherapy in childhood often results in male testicular damage and consequently jeopardizes future fertility. According to the findings published in Stem Cells and Developmentthe researchers found that the presence of spermatogonial cells (SPGCs) in the testes of prepubertal cancer patient boys (PCPBs) can be used to develop future strategies for male fertility preservation.

In the study, seven testicular biopsies were obtained from chemotherapy-treated PCPBs. The researchers were able to cultivate and isolate testicular cells into different stages of development (pre-meiotic, meiotic and post-meiotic cells). Furthermore, they identified sperm-like cells that had developed from testicular cells of a PCPB.

Prof. Mahmoud Huleihel

“Our results demonstrate, for the first time, the presence of biologically active SPGCs in testicular biopsies of chemotherapy-treated PCPBs, and their capacity to develop in vitro to different stages of spermatogenesis, including generation of sperm-like cells,” according to lead researcher Prof. Mahmoud Huleihel, co-director of the Center of Advanced Research and Education in Reproduction (CARER), and a member of BGU’s Shraga Segal Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Genetics.

“This study may open the way for new therapeutic strategies for fertility preservation of PCPBs and for azoospermic patients.”

The study was funded in part by The Kahn Foundation and The United States-Israel Binational Science Foundation (BSF).

Other researchers who participated include Prof. Eitan Lunenfeld, Fertility and IVF Unit, Dep. OB/GYN, Soroka and co-director of CARER from Prof. Huleihel’s lab are Ph.D. students Maram Abofoul-Azab and Ali Abu Madighem. Additional authors include Prof. Joseph Kapelushnik from BGU and Soroka, Prof. Qing Hua Shi from the University of Science and Technology of China, and Prof. Haim Pinkas of Beilinson Hospital in Israel.

ABOUT AMERICANS FOR BEN-GURION UNIVERSITY

By supporting a world-class academic institution that not only nurtures the Negev, but also shares its expertise locally and globally, Americans for Ben-Gurion University engages a community of Americans who are committed to improving the world. David Ben-Gurion envisioned that Israel’s future would be forged in the Negev. The cutting-edge research carried out at Ben-Gurion University drives that vision by sustaining a desert Silicon Valley, with the “Stanford of the Negev” at its center. The Americans for Ben-Gurion University movement supports a 21st century unifying vision for Israel by rallying around BGU’s remarkable work and role as an apolitical beacon of light in the Negev desert.

About Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Ben-Gurion University of the Negev embraces the endless potential we have as individuals and as a commonality to adapt and to thrive in changing environments. Inspired by our location in the desert, we aim to discover, to create, and to develop solutions to dynamic challenges, to pose questions that have yet to be asked, and to push beyond the boundaries of the commonly accepted and possible.

We are proud to be a central force for inclusion, diversity and innovation in Israel, and we strive to extend the Negev’s potential and our entrepreneurial spirit throughout the world. For example, the multi-disciplinary School for Sustainability and Climate Change at BGU leverages over 50 years of expertise on living and thriving in the desert into scalable solutions for people everywhere.

BGU at a glance:  

20,000 students | 800 senior faculty | 3 campuses | 6 faculties: humanities & social sciences, health sciences, engineering sciences, natural sciences, business & management, and desert research.

 

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