Stem Cells part 31

Stem cells have a bright future  for the therapeutic world by promising stem cell therapy. We hope to see new horizon of therapeutics in the form of bone marrow transplant, skin replacement, organ development, and replacement of  lost tissue such as hairs, tooth, retina and cochlear cells.

Stem Cells part 30

Scientists and stem cell research

Scientists believe that stem cell research could lead to cures for a myriad of diseases afflicting humans. Anti-abortion groups, some religious groups, and conservative citizens say that using cells from embryos is immoral because it destroys life. However, recent news has shown that support stem cell research by a 2-1 margin and say that it should be funded by the federal government, despite controversy over the human embryos.

Stem Cells part 29

Diabetes affects millions of people in the world and is caused by the abnormal metabolism of insulin. Normally, insulin is produced and secreted by the cellular structures called the islets of langerhans in the pancreas. Recently, insulin expressing cells from mouse stem cells have been generated. In addition, the cells self assemble to form structures, which closely resemble normal pancreatic islets and produce insulin. Future research will need to investigate how to optimize conditions for insulin production with the aim of providing a stem cell-based therapy to treat diabetes to replace the constant need for insulin injections.

Stem Cells part 28

Brain cell transplantation

Stem cells can provide dopamine - a chemical lacking in victims of Parkinson's disease. It involves the loss of cells which produce the neurotransmitter dopamine. The first double-blind study of fetal cell transplant for Parkinson's disease reported survival and release of dopamine from the transplanted cells and a functional symptoms. However, some patients developed side effects, which suggested that there was an over sensitization to or too much dopamine. Although the unwanted side effects were not anticipated, the success of the experiment at the cellular level is significant.

Stem Cells part 27

Skin replacement

The knowledge of stem cells has made it possible for scientists to grow skin from a patient's plucked hair. Skin (kerayinocyte) stem cells reside in the hair  follicle and can be removed when a hair is plucked. These cells can be cultured to form an epidermal equivalent of the patients own skin and provides tissue for an autologous graft, bypassing the problem of rejection.

Stem Cells part 26

Bone marrow transplant are a well known clinical application of stem cell transplantation. Bone marrow transplant can repopulate the marrow and restore all the different cell types of blood after high doses of chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy, our main defense and used to eliminate endogenous cancer cells. The isolation of additional stem cell and progenitors cells is now being developed for many other clinical applications.

Stem Cells part 25

Possible treatments by stem cells

A number of stem cell therapeutics exist, but most are at experimental stages and/or costly, with the  notable exception of bone marrow transplantation. Medical researchers anticipate that adult and embryonic stem cells will soon be able to treat cancer, type I diabetes mellitus, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, celiac disease, cardiac failure, muscle damage and neurological disorders, and many others. They have suggested that before stem cell tharapeutics can be applied in the clinical setting, more research is necessary to understand stem cell behavior upon transplantation as well as the mechanisms of stem cells interaction with the disease/injured microenvirontment.