MEDFORD, Mass., March 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Biocell Center Corporation and Caritas Christi Health Care, New England's largest community-based hospital network, and its flagship hospital St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, are pleased to announce the launch of a cryopreservation service for amniotic fluid stem cells obtained during a routine second trimester amniocentesis procedure.

According to Dr. Lucy Bayer-Zwirello, Chief of Maternal Fetal Medicine at Caritas Christi and Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Tufts University School of Medicine, "Amniotic fluid is one of the richest sources of mesenchymal stem cells that are viewed by many as the next frontier in stem cell therapy, with dozens of studies in cellular therapies and tissue regeneration on-going."    

"We are proud of this very important collaboration," said Dr. Kate Torchilin, CEO of Biocell Center Corporation. "We are looking forward to working with such a prominent New England hospital group as Caritas Christi to bring to its patients the opportunity to cryopreserve the cells from amniotic fluid as a biological insurance for their children."  

"These cells are very young in their development and can become many different cells and tissue types, unlike more developed adult stem cells," Dr. Torchilin added. "Once properly cryopreserved, the amniotic fluid cells can be stored for decades, and from the small sample enough cells can be generated for a potential medical procedure for the child from birth well into adulthood, as well as for immediate family members if required."

Biocell Center has recently been featured in L'Osservatore Romano, the official newspaper of the Vatican, in an interview heralding amniotic fluid stem cells as "the future of medicine" and touting this source of stem cells as morally acceptable. Amniotic fluid stem cells can be easily harvested during amniocentesis, thus making them very easy for the doctor to collect.  

"We see this service as very valuable for our patients because it gives them a unique opportunity to preserve cells for their baby's future. And, as a doctor, I appreciate the ability to give that extra service and option to my patients without any changes to the standard clinical practice," said Dr. Bayer-Zwirello.  

Caritas Christi will be offering this service as part of the standard genetic amniocentesis procedure at all six of its hospitals across New England.

For additional information, please contact Laurie Fullerton, Public Relations Director at Biocell Center, at laurie.fullerton@biocellcenter.com, 781-391-2040, or Chris Murphy, Director of Media Relations, Caritas Christi, 617-562-5652, christopher.murphy@caritaschristi.org.

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SOURCE Biocell Center Corporation