The Small Intestine: The Most Rapidly Dividing Tissue of the Body

The function of the small intestine is digestion. The small intestine is developed for its role because the inside wall of the small intestine is thin, with a large surface area. This allows absorption in the body to happen quickly and more efficiently.

Because of their unparalleled ability to differentiate into a number of different cell types, stem cells are an attractive subject in the field of medical science. Stem cell therapy explores the possibility of introducing stem cells into

The relationship between the structure and function of the Outer Wall Intestine cells is, in the structure, the fibers are short and not striated, while since the cells are “smooth cells” this allows the function of the cells to be involuntary and is composed in the lining of the organ. The contractions of the cells allow the organ to keep blood, fluids, and necessary nutrients to flow throughout the organ.

The stomach is an organ that is part of the digestive system. The stomach is located in the upper left part of the abdominal cavity, below the diaphragm and next to the liver (Stomach, 2013). The inner walls of the stomach contain small pores called gastric pits. The gastric pits contain cells that secrete chemicals that aid in the digestion of food (Nguyen, 2015). In this essay, I will discuss the different cell types of the stomach, how they work together to provide the overall function of the stomach, why each organ requires different cell types, why the stomach can’t be comprised of just one cell type, and the advantage of having different types of cells.

It contains many circular folds that increase the surface area of the functional mucous membrane. Enterocytes are cells found in the upper part of each villus and secrete enzymes for the digestion and absorption of fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. Not having the villi within the inner surface of small intestine makes the body is unable to absorb nutrients essential for health and growth. Instead, nutrients such as fat, protein, vitamins, and minerals are eliminated in the stool (NIDDK, 2018).

"Embryonic stem cells are special because they are the only cells that can make all parts of the body,” said Douglas Melton, in an interactive videoconference available at athome.harvard.edu. The conference was hosted in New York and broadcasted to Cambridge, Washington D.C., and Naples, Florida on March 2, 2004. "Embryonic stem cells can do everything. So if you want to work on replenishing tissues, that’s where you go."

Embryonic stem cells are found in human blastocysts (Marcovitz 17). A blastocyst is a very young embryo (just a few days old) that contains around 200 undifferentiated stem cells (Marcovitz 17). German Zoologist Valentin Hacker coined the term “stem cell” after he discovered them in a blastocyst of a crustacean (Marcovitz 18). Embryonic stem cells were collected for the first time in 1988 by Dr. James Thomson of University of Wisconsin and by Dr. John Gearheart of Johns Hopkins (Panno 76). These stem cells are unspecialized; they do not perform a specific function like cells such as muscle and nerve do (“Stem Cells”). They are also pluripotent, meaning they have the ability to divide and become specialized cells (“Stem Cells”). This is why stem cells hold so

To give a short overview of the steps that will be taken to complete the study. Obtaining stem cells, whether adult, embryonic or induced, shall be done using healthy mouse models and after ethical approval has been gained. The process to derive them will be detailed below, however they are also purchasable commercially with the benefit of being well studied and accompanied by a detailed analysis of properties, however with a

There are a number of advantages associated with the stem cell research. As these stern cells obtained from embryos possess the capability to renew them and can set apart into a broad cell type range, the research on these stem cells can have potential comprehensive and influential applications. One of the great examples of this is the fact that embryonic stem cell research can have significant benefits for those who suffer from Type I diabetes. Moreover, embryonic stem cell research put forwards remarkable

Stem cell research is the future of medical and biological research and remedies, and it is fascinating to watch the progression of this new and important science as it unfolds. These cells were discovered in mouse embryos in the 1980s, and are remarkable because of their potential to grow into a variety of different kinds of cells within a body. Common in fetuses, and more rare in adult animals of all kinds, stem cells can be manipulated in useful ways to repair many tissues, dividing limitlessly for therapeutic purposes. When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the potential either to remain a stem cell or to differentiate into more specialized tissue, such as nerve, pancreas, bone marrow, or unique blood components. Initially

Many scientists believe that embryonic stem cell (ESC) research is the key to curing diseases such as cancer and HIV. Stem cells are so important to biomedical research because they are primitive cells that are capable of replicating indefinitely producing a multitude of different types of cells. This means that one of these pre-determined cells has to potential of becoming any range of over two hundred tissues with epithelial cells to blood and

The ability to manipulate the stem cell corresponding to a specific organ/tissue remains important. A type of stem cell that can be manipulated is the embryonic stem cell. These stem cells descend from embryos aging from three to five days (Watt) (Driskell). During earlier stages, scientists describe embryonic stem cells as “blastocysts” which contain over one-hundred and fifty cells (Watt) (Driskell). They duplicate into more cells or transform to any cell located in the body (Watt) (Driskell). This “duplication” allows embryonic stem cells to regenerate and repair diseased tissues. Embryonic stem cells gain importance in cancer treatments—if doctors diagnose patients with leukemia, then during chemotherapy, the doctor can infuse embryonic stem cells into the body. Since the cells are young, they can repair the targeted cell, aiding cancer treatments and the patient. In addition, this technique is used with another type of embryonic stem cell called “pluripotent stem cells”. Pluripotent stem cells originate as inner mast cells (cells

Type I diabetes is often diagnosed in young children and is caused when the immune system attacks the pancreatic beta cells in the body. This stops the production of insulin, which is bad because the patient can no longer absorb glucose like a normal person. This causes the body to use fat as an energy source. Type I diabetes becomes a burden to the patient, who has to constantly monitor their blood pressure and inject insulin into their bodies on a daily basis. Experiments on mice have shown that it is possible to use embryonic stem cells to create immature pancreatic beta cells once transplanted into the pancreas. When these pancreatic beta cells mature they will be able to produce insulin for the body. One drawback is that when the cells mature they will have to divide and this could cause tumors in the pancreas. If scientists can figure out a way to stop the tumors, it would be a major breakthrough in finding the cure to Type I diabetes (Boseley,

antigens, and their responsiveness to certain growth factors.” These characteristics show how stem cells are both complex in nature and are a perfect solution to many of the medical issues that are occurring today (See figure 1).

“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)