Umbilical Cord Blood Transfusion in Progeria Syndrome

This is a pilot study on safety and efficacy of umbilical cord blood therapy for patients with Hutchinson Gilford Progeria syndrome (HGPS). HGPS is a rare genetic disease where affected LMNA gene coding lamin A protein leads to premature aging and early death. Teenagers with HGPS are in high risk of atherosclerosis and ischemic stroke, and these are major reason of mortality in HGPS.Currently, there are no definite cure for this rare genetic disease. Among the potential drugs under investigation, Lornafarnib (farnesyltransferase inhibitor) lowered the carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) and also lowered mortality. Stem cell therapy has proven its efficacy in progeria mouse model. We are trying to study safety and efficacy of umbilical cord blood therapy in human HGPS patients.