Stem Cell Types and Their Uses in
Research and Therapy
Stem cells are the source of all differentiated cells in the body hannibal.marketminute. They have the ability
to grow and divide indefinitely to generate many different cell types that make up a
tissue or organ. They are also the source of specialized cells that can replace
damaged or diseased cells in the body.
Embryonic stem cells are the most commonly used type of stem cell for research
and therapy. They are obtained from early mammalian embryos called blastocysts,
which develop when eggs are fertilized with sperm in the process of in vitro
fertilization. The use of these preimplantation human embryos raises both ethical
and legal concerns. Some people believe that destroying these preimplantation
embryos is morally wrong, while others accept it because of the unique potential
benefits that stem cells have for research and therapeutics development.
Researchers have identified cancer stem cells in a number of solid tumors, including
breast and colon cancer. These cancer stem cells may have the capacity to re-grow
tumors in some patients, even after chemotherapy treatments are completed. The
goal of cancer research is to find a way to destroy these cancer stem cells in order
to eliminate the tumors and their recurrence.
To develop therapies that kill or suppress cancer stem cells, scientists use a
technique known as therapeutic cloning. This method enables the creation of
versatile stem cells independent of fertilized eggs. This method is gaining interest
because it provides a means of generating stem cells from the body’s own cells and
thereby reduces the ethical, political, and environmental risks associated with using
embryonic cells for therapy.
Scientists have been able to grow induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from both
human and mouse tissue cultures in the laboratory. These cells are reprogrammed
by adding or removing certain signals that tell them to remain unspecialized
(pluripotent).
The iPSCs then differentiate into a variety of adult cell types, similar to the
specialised cells that make up the different tissues and organs in the human body.
The iPSCs can then be used for research and therapy to develop drugs, vaccines,
and other products for treatment of a wide range of diseases.
Some iPSCs can also be used for stem cell transplantation, in which doctors take the
cells from the bone marrow of someone with an illness and use them to produce new
blood or other tissues for another patient. These transplants are currently performed
in patients with certain blood-related and cancer diseases.
In addition, iPSCs can be reprogrammed to become other kinds of stem cells that
can give rise to specific cell types in the body. These reprogrammed iPSCs include
adipose (fat) stem cells and blood-forming stem cells found in the bone marrow.
Researchers have also discovered that some iPSCs can develop into the cells that
give rise to a person’s reproductive gametes, sperm or eggs. This ability makes
iPSCs useful for creating chimeric mice that contain both the donor iPSCs and host
cells that have been genetically modified.