Research Study On Mesenchymal Stem Cells

These cells come from fetuses which is why stem cells are such a controversial issue. In order to actually use embryonic cells, they must be harvested from an unborn baby that is in the early stages of life. Embryonic cells have the ability to be all 220 types of tissues in the human body. “This makes them ideal for regenerating diseased heart tissue, repairing spinal cords, and replenishing brain cells”, Elizabeth Svoboda, an author in the publicized Popular Science magazine, illustrates in her article about stem cells (60). Embryonic cells have limitless possibilities in medical advancement. These cells can become whatever type of cell a doctor program them to be. With the use of embryonic stem cells, doctors can cure several diseases, as well as curing people who have suffered injuries, but research is being slowed down by the ethical dilemma of aborting a

Many of us have all heard the saying that a “lizard can lose its tail,” and bizarrely enough it will grow back. This was always considered impossible for humans, an idea belonging in the realm of science fiction, but now the regeneration of tissue is an extremely realistic possibility. Despite some opinions, this process does not happen naturally, or take place as cinematically as one might imagine. Over the past decade, there have been major advances in regenerative medicine, commonly known as stem cell research. Stem cells are undifferentiated cells within the body that have the capability to specialize into any tissue. They are most commonly found in cord blood, bone marrow, organ donations, placenta, and embryos . Stem cells are seen by some as a new miracle treatment, encouraging many countries to invest in their research.

The first type of stem cell, an embryonic stem cell, is known for being able to continuously multiply, as well as for being pluripotent. They can be “derived in vitro from the blastocyst of an embryo usually left over from in vitro fertilization” (Forraz & McGuckin, 2011, p.61). Unlike other types of stem cells, embryonic stem cells have yet to be used in any kind of clinical treatment of patients. The high risks of “immune rejection” or “teratoma formation” are serious obstacles (Harris, 2009, p.182). The second type of stem cell, adult stem cells, is primarily considered to be multipotent and may be found in “specific adult human tissues” such as the skin or bone marrow, just to name a few. Over the last twenty years, the amount of scientific research and trials using adult stem cells has grown significantly, despite their lower potency than embryonic stem cells (Forraz & McGuckin, 2011, p.61). Lastly, cord blood stem cells, are technically considered to be a special type of adult stem cell, but their youthful properties give them “greater restorative and regenerative potential.” Directly following the birth of a child, these stem cells can be collected from the blood in the umbilical cord (Steenblock & Payne, 2006, p.9). Embryonic, adult, and cord blood stem cells

In come a stem cell which is an immature cell that can become a different cell, or even transform into one of many different cells. Most stem cells can also renew or divide themselves indefinitely. These two characteristics are what present a new pathway to repairing damage to the human body caused by trauma, degeneration and disease. Stem cells keep on generating in the body and take place of the cells which have died such as in a spinal cord injury. The process of using stem cells for spinal cord injury is controversial for some and involves taking one’s own bone marrow or a donated human umbilical cord. A licensed anesthesiologist harvests bone marrow from both hips under light general anesthesia in a hospital operating room, the procedure takes about one and half to two hours. The bone marrow-derived stem cells have to pass rigorous testing for quality and to ensure there is not bacterial contamination before they are administered to the patient. In the same fashion

In humans adult stem cells, not embryonic stem cells, have been used in therapies for more than forty years. People with blood disorders have used stem cell therapy to take the opportunity to improve upon their life. On the other hand, embryonic stem cells have a very high potential to treat or even cure numerous diseases like diabetes and heart disease. They are much more versatile in their usage compared to adult stem cells. Another practical use for embryonic stem cells is to treat damaged nerves ("Testing The Use…”). These nerves could have been impaired in a spinal cord injury. As of today, scientists have already performed stem cell transplants in people whose cells were damaged through chemotherapy of disease.

Bone marrow transplants save a lot lives every year, a suitable donor is regrettably not always available. Since organs are routinely harvested from cadaveric organ donors, Scientists decided to assess such a possibility for bone marrow. They analyzed the functional properties and the phenotypic markers of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC) from cadaveric bone marrow. Fresh bone marrow was capable of growing and developing in cell suspension for 2

It doesn’t stop at the cord blood either. Further research shows that stem cells can be obtained

A limited amount of stem cells can be extracted from after birth, but these few cells can mean a longer or improved life for someone (Bergman). In addition, people believe that harvesting cord blood cells steals the cells from the child. The umbilical cord is cut and clamped just like a typical delivery (CariCord). Delayed clamping, in which the cord is left attached to drain the blood back into the baby, still allows the afterbirth to be donated. The science behind cord blood banking is still developing because these treatments have only been performed for a little over ten years and the only way to overcome that is to move forward with research (Stem Cell). Cord blood cells hold the potential of becoming brain and heart cells and combatting serious neurological diseases. The science is young, but one out of every three hundred kids are plagued with cerebral palsy and one of every sixty-eight children battle autism (What It Is). The chance of helping people throughout the world live a better life fuels the need for an increase of support in this budding

First of all an understanding of what a stem cell is, where it comes from, and the significance of it's medical potential is essential. Stem cells are the "master cells" that form the human body or whatever other animal it is from. Stem cells can be extracted from adult tissues, bone marrow, umbilical cord blood ( ), and embryos in the blastocyst stage. Although scientists have found ways to manipulate the stem cells from adult sources into other types of cells, they claim that they are less capable of deriving the desired tissue and are not "biologically equivalent" ( ) to stem cells extracted from embryos.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are abundant in various tissues such as umbilical cord, adipose tissue, bone marrow and the liver. Previous research has demonstrated that the intradermal injection of umbilical cord-derived MSCs do not trigger an allergic reaction and hence the limited capacity of UCMSCs. In another study by Mao et al., the intramuscular injection of hUCMSCs did not cause inflammation, effusion or ulceration at the points of injection (7). Moreover, the injection in rats did not alter the heart, kidney and liver function. The results from these studies portray intramuscular injection of hUCMSCs as a possible administration

A few individuals with coronary illness and diabetes have gotten trial medications taking into account foundational cells disconnected from grown-up tissue, frequently from bone marrow, with shifting degrees of achievement. These mesenchymal stem cells, or MSCs, can develop into a few tissues including muscle, bone, ligament and fat yet there is no ensure that they will develop into heart muscle. This will left us with the answer to many people around the world why and how stem cells are stored.

The process when stem cells give rise to blood cells, or any other specialized cells, is called differentiation (“Stem Cell Basics”). Stem Cells’ ability of differentiation can be targeted and directed to generate tissue and therefore to cure degenerative diseases (Panno 24-28). However, such medical promise faces the doubts and gives rise to disputes. In fact, federal funds for stem cell research were banned under President Bush’s administration, but the ban was then lifted by President Obama’s administration (Obama). Despite the different arguments, more medical trials should be conducted with embryonic stem cells in order to determine whether the medical promise is applicable or far-fetched.

Umbilical cord mesenchymal cells would be isolated from Wharton’s jelly of babies born by c-section with the mother’s consent. The umbilical cords would be placed in Hank’s Balanced Salt Solution containing penicillin, streptomycin sulfate, and amphotericin B. The umbilical cord would be washed in alcohol and phosphate-buffered saline. With the amnion and blood vessels removed the left over umbilical cord would be chopped up into 5mm diameter pieces and placed into 35x10mm petri dishes. The umbilical mesenchymal cells would be cultured as per Yousefifard et al.’s methods. Excess blastocysts that would otherwise be discarded during in-vitro fertilization were collected from a local fertility clinic with full informed consent of the mothers. The embryonic stem cells would be then isolated from the inner mast cells of those blastocysts. These embryonic stem cells would then be cultured and differentiated into neural stem cells as per Nicoleau et al.’s methods. To ensure the identities of both cell types their surface antigens were checked using flow

“Through the isolation and manipulation of cells, scientists are finding ways to identify young, regenerating ones that can be used to replace damaged of dead cells in diseased organs. This therapy is similar to the process of organ transplant, only the treatment consists of the transplantation of cells rather than organs. The cells that have shown by far the most promise of supplying diseased organs with healthy cells are called stem cells.” (Chapter Preface)

2. How can the latest research in stem cells used from cord blood and tissue banking support expectant parents’ decision to save their baby umbilical cord blood?