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Adv cel sci tissue cul 2017 | Volume 1 Issue 2
Cell Science, Stem Cell Research &
Pharmacological Regenerative Medicine
November 29-30, 2017 | Atlanta, USA
Annual Congress on
L
ithium (Li) salts have been widely used in psychiatry as
mood stabilizing agents for 60 years. Li is found in variable
amounts in foods, especially grains, vegetables and in some
areas, the drinking water. Collectively these sources provide
a significant source of the element. Therefore, dietary intake
in humans depends on location, type of foods consumed
and fluid intake. Traces of Li have been detected in human
organs and tissues, leading speculation that the element
was responsible for specific functions in the human body.
It was not until the 20th century that studies performed
in the 1970’s and 1990’s, primarily in chickens, cows, rats
and goats, maintained on Li-deficient diets demonstrated
higher mortality, altered reproductive and behavioral
abnormalities. Such deficiencies have not been detected
in humans; however, studies performed on populations
living in areas with low Li levels in water supplies have been
associated with higher rates of suicides, homicides and the
arrests rate for drug abuse and other violence-based crimes.
Li appears to play a significant role in early fetal development
as evidenced by high Li levels during the early gestational
period. Biochemically, the mechanism of Li action is multi-
factorial involving interconnection pathways incorporating
enzymes (a potent inhibitor of GSK3β), hormones, vitamins
and growth and transforming factors. It clearly can substitute
for magnesium as a cation catalyst and at the molecular level
it is an effective inhibitor of the Wnt signal transduction
pathway. This body of evidence now appears sufficient to
label Li as an essential element with the recommended RDA
for a 70-kg adult of 1000 μg/day. Of extreme importance for
the future is the growing body of evidence indicating Li can
be used effectively for the treatment of acute brain injuries,
e.g., ischemia and chronic neurodegenerative diseases such
as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Tauopathies
and Huntington’s disease. This conclusion is based upon
increasing evidence showing Li as important in neurogenesis
as well as protecting neurons from neurotoxicity. More than
thirty years ago, it was discovered Li influences stem cells
derived from bone marrow by increasing their proliferation,
thus stem cell numbers are increased in the presence of Li. It
is now being well established that Li increases neurogenesis
through stimulation of neuronal derived stem cells. This
observation has now shown great promise for additional
therapeutic implications for this element in clinical medicine
in addition to treating psychiatric/mood disorders. Li has
now been shown to be an efficacious treatment modality
associated with faulty production or damaged blood or nerve
cells, in addition to serving as an effective tool to enhance
blood stem cell mobilization for transplantation.
Speaker Biography
Vincent S Gallicchio earned his PhD in Experimental Hematology at New York University
Medical Center and completed fellowships in Hematology at the Sloan Kettering
Institute for Cancer Research and at the University of Connecticut Health Center. He
was awarded a diploma in Internal Medicine from the “Vasile Goldis” University of
Arad (Romania). He was rated the number one academic biomedical laboratory science
researcher in the United States. His rating of 551 was nearly twice that of the next
closest professor’s score of 285. Additionally, during his leadership, the academic
program in Clinical Laboratory Science at the University of Kentucky Medical Center
was rated the number one program of its kind among 127 in the nation. His passion
for research, a high value placed on excellence, a strong reputation as an esteemed
collaborator and a tenacious desire to see a better therapies for human diseases
brought to market speak to his overall character.
e:
vsgall@clemson.eduVincent S Gallicchio
Clemson University, USA
Lithium and stem cells - Advances in stem cell application in clinical medicine