The Types Of Stem Cells

Stem Cell research and its funding have caused a lot of controversy throughout the past years. Stem cells are cells that are present in all living organisms. These cells have the potential to grow into any type of cell, including blood cells, nerves, muscles, and pancreatic cells. Stem cell research is essential because of the beneficial aspects it has to offer. Stem cells could potentially treat conditions such as Alzheimer 's, Parkinson 's, birth defects, strokes, Diabetes, cancer, and help in the reconstruction of severely damaged organs. Although stem cell research withholds great potential for many medical advances, a lot of controversy surrounds the sources and methods of obtaining stem cells and the possibility of improper usage of the knowledge acquired from research and experimentation. It is necessary for scientist to continue research as well as recognizing any ethical issues that may be present.

The disease stem cells could fix is called Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). The reason I chose this topic is because I have seen first hand how badly someone who suffers from Alzheimer’s Disease is affected in their daily lives. This disease completely takes over their lives and they turn into a completely different person who can hardly function. AD is very tough on the loved ones of the person suffering from it because that person, most of the time has no idea what is going on or who their loved ones are. The memories for people with AD is completely gone and even the simplest tasks such as remembering to use the bathroom becomes difficult. The way stem cells could be feasible is because stem cell-based therapies could potentially treat

this research would be to identify the factors that are involved in the cell making process that determines cell specialization. A few of our extreme medical conditions, like birth defects and cancer, are a direct result of abnormal cell specialization. If researchers obtain a better understanding of the normal cellular process, they can isolate the causes of these deadly illnesses. The most exciting potential use for stem cells is the generation of tissues and cells. Many diseases are a direct result from complications of cellular functions or destruction of tissues in the body. Many people donate organs and tissues to replace failing or destroyed tissues. Unfortunately, there are many more people suffering from these disorders than there are organs to transplant. That is where stem cells step in. They will give humans a chance to have a renewable source of cells and tissues that will treat a slue of diseases, and disabilities such as, Parkinson’s, stroke, burns, Alzheimer’s, spinal cord injury, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and

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

. Embryonic stem cells have been identified by scientist as a type of stem cell that can advance regenerative medicine. The potential of regenerative medicine ranges from allowing pancreatic cells to produce insulin for diabetics to reconnecting the nerves in severed spinal cords. However, the greatest potential embryonic stem cells presents are its ability to change into any of the more than 200 different cell types in the body. This ability to change into any cell type can produce cures for Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, or any of the other conditions that stem cell therapy might help therefore improving the lives of those who live with these

cells which can help treat people suffering from diabetes. Even tissues can be grown again by

The use of stem cells can advance drug development, knowledge of disease, patience specific disease treatment, and can bypass the limits of mouse-models for research. According to the National Institute of Health (1), stem cells are unique in the following ways: they can divide and renew themselves for long periods, they are unspecialized, and they can give rise to specialized cell types. The uniqueness of these stem cells allows for the testing of new drugs, cell-based therapies and the study of human development including cancer research. Human stem cell therapies have been used for the treatment of neurological disease in human clinical trials such as Parkinson’s disease (2), spinal cord injury (3,4) stroke (5), and

stem cells were discovered a long ago that they can be beneficial for fighting against the killer diseases but after passing of two decades of the discovery it has been profound that (hESCs) are being tried as a treatment for two noteworthy illnesses: heart fail and type 1 diabetes.

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,

Stem cells are cells within the body that have the ability to grow and reproduce repeatedly into any type of mature cell. They are unspecialized cells that divide through mitosis to produce more stem cells that replace cells in the system in which they are found. Stems cells make it possible for the body to renew and repair its damaged tissues. They are also vital in the development of human life. Stem cells are high potential cells, and this makes them a top focus in the biomedical research world. (Stem Cell Basics, 2009) This paper will discuss the background, function, and other aspects of stem cells.

From the medical perspective, stem cell research is viewed as very promising due to the fact that if stem cells can be introduced into patients with a range of illnesses, they could possible help regenerate the tissues and organs of the patients and thereby help heal illnesses (and especially degenerative illnesses) that are currently incurable. For example, Lovell-Badge has indicated that diabetes, Parkinson's disease, and Huntington's disease are among the illnesses that could

“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)

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 million Americans will be diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease this year, 1.7 million diagnosed with any type of cancer, and over 29 million diagnosed with either type 1 or 2 diabetes. Although these diseases are very different from each other, and even more contrasting between each individual case, all three are known as degenerative diseases, a progressive loss of organ or tissue function that is many times permanent. With a rise in these diseases, the future of many Americans could be threatened or even shortened. To reduce the amount of people that are diagnosed and die from degenerative diseases, stem cells should be utilized as a treatment because they are easily accessible

The process of being able to put stem cells to use has finally begun (Alexander). Getting the approval for stem cell research has been a challenge and a controversy from the time that President George W. Bush was in the White House. It wasn’t until scientists found that the cure for type-one diabetes could lie within the research that they began to fight for the funding to study. “A San Diego man had two pouches of lab-grown pancreas cells, derived from human embryonic stem cells, inserted into his body through incisions in his back” (Alexander). By being able to take this step forward, scientists are finally able to put their theories into play. They know that if these pancreas cells are inserted into their subject, then the subject wouldn’t have to constantly be taking their readings or worrying about insulin because the hormones released from the pouches would be able to remove all the unneeded glucose from their blood. The restrictions on stem cell research have made this study only the third of its kind in the United States (Alexander). Since they discovered the different possibilities of stem cells, ViaCyte has been pushing to be able to further their research. After decades of working and studying, they believe that they are on the right path to change the lives of those suffering from diabetes. If their trials run smoothly and work as planned, millions of lives will be

Stem cells have 3 general properties they are capable of dividing the cells and renewing it for a long periods of time. They are also unspecialized and can give rise to specialized type of cells. The stem cells offer new potentials for treating diseases such as diabetes, and heart