Stem Cell Research and Therapy Reporter: Maulion, Marienelle Researchers: Marcial, Meg Medenilla, Jhudielle Medenilla, Jhudielle

STEM CELL Unique Properties – Stem cells are unspecialized – Stem cells are capable of dividing and renewing themselves for long periods – Stem cells can give rise to specialized cells 2 Kinds of Stem Cell – Embryonic Stem Cell – Adult Stem Cell Source: Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Embryonic Stem Cell

Derived from embryos – surplus embryos from in vitro fertilization donated for research purposes with informed consent of the donors Grow in cell cultures Threshold of cloning “Therapeutic Cloning” vs “Reproductive Cloning” Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle Source:

Adult Stem Cell

What is an Adult Stem Cell? Undifferentiated cell from differentiated cell in a tissue or organ Can renew itself Differentiation – Can differentiate into specialized cell types Transdifferentiation/Plasticity – Ability to form specialized cell types of other tissues Functions to maintain and repair tissues to which they are found Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Types of Adult Stem Cells Hematopoietic stem cells : give rise to all blood cell types Bone marrow stromal cells: give rise to bone cells (osteocytes), cartilage cells (chondrocytes), fat cells (adipocytes), other kinds of connective tissue cells Epithelial stem cells in digestive tract: give rise to absorptive cells, goblet cells, Paneth cells, and enteroendocrine cells. Source: Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Types of Adult Stem Cells Skin stem cells: – Epidermal stem cells: keratinocytes – Follicular Stem cells: hair follicles, epidermis Neural Stem Cells: nerve cells (neurons), astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. Source: Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Source of Adult Stem Cell Bone Marrow Dental Pulp Peripheral Blood Olfactory Bulb Spinal Cord Muscle Liver Sperm Breast Pancreas Skin Synovial Membrane Cartilage Amniontic Membrane* Umbilical Cord Blood* Umbilical Cord Mesenchyme* Teratocarcinomas* Source: Adult Stem Cells DAVID A. PRENTICE, PH.D. Professor of Life Sciences at Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Indiana Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Adult Stem Cells as Therapy Regeneration or replacement of dead or damaged cells – the primary goal of regenerative medicine and one of the prime motivations for study of stem cells Used to deliver stimulatory or protective factors to tissues and endogenous stem cells Provide an efficient vehicle for gene therapy applications Allow increased functionality, proliferative capacity, or stimulatory capability Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Adult Stem Cells as Therapy Replacing the dopamine-producing cells in the brains of Parkinson's patients Developing insulin-producing cells for type I diabetes Repairing damaged heart muscle following a heart attack with cardiac muscle cells Repair of damaged retinal tissues Capability forming kidney cells, mesangial cells to repopulate the glomerulus and repair of damaged renal tubules in the kidney Potential treatment of multiple sclerosis lesions in the brain Source: Adult Stem Cells DAVID A. PRENTICE, PH.D. Professor of Life Sciences at Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Indiana Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Adult Stem Cell vs. Embryonic Stem Cell Adult Stem cellEmbryonic Stem cell Limited to differentiating into different cell types of their tissue of origin Pluripotent: can become all cell types of the body Expanding their numbers in cell culture is still being worked out; difficult to grow in the laboratory Easily grown in culture Patient’s own cells can be expanded in culture and reintroduced in the patient Incompatibility to patient is quite likely Cells would not be rejected by immune system Cause transplant rejection Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Adult Stem Cell vs. Embryonic Stem Cell Adult Stem cellEmbryonic Stem cell Extremely low risk of tumor growth They can grow out-of-control forming tumors Easier to control than embryonic cells Because they have the potential to become any cell in the human body, they are difficult for scientists to control They are much more stable They can change into unintended types of cells in the body: cells intended to become liver cells may become pancreatic cells High success rates Safety and effectiveness in humans has not yet been determined Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Adult Stem Cell as an Alternative to Embryonic Stem Cell Adult Stem cells are free of ethical concerns – Harvesting adult stem cell avoids destruction of embryos – Does not need cloning – Has been very successful: In Dusseldorf, in July 2001, German doctors reported that a patient’s own bone marrow adult stem cells were used to regenerate tissue damaged by a heart attack, improving his heart function. US doctors have taken adult stem cells from the brain of a patient with Parkinson’s disease and reimplanted them resulting in an 83% improvement in the patient. Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Ethical Concerns ADULT STEM CELL PRINCIPLE OF HUMAN DIGNITY PRINCIPLE OF STEWARDSHIP PRINCIPLE OF BENEFICENCE PRINCIPLE OF NON- MALEFICENCE EMBRYONIC STEM CELL Violates Principle of Human Dignity Violates Principle of Stewardship Violates Principle of Beneficence Violates Principle of Non-Maleficence

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Ethical Concerns The ethical debate could be avoided because stem cells may also be obtained from adults Some scientists maintain that his source of adult stem cells is so promising that the use of embryonic stem cells will be irrelevant in the future. Clearly adult stem cells seem more adapted to overcoming rejection because they may be taken from the very persons who need genetic therapy in the form of new tissue or organs. Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Ethical Concerns Genetic engineering of the human genome of phenotype is well within the realm of ethical research and therapy provided it is properly designed to protect human dignity and does not use as a source of stem cells embryonic material from human fetuses Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle

Ethical Concerns Against embryonic stem cells – the shedding of innocent blood is a despicable thing to God (Proverbs 6:17). – "...research involving human pluripotent stem cells...promises new treatments and possible cures for many debilitating diseases and injuries, including Parkinson's disease, diabetes, heart disease, multiple sclerosis, burns and spinal cord injuries. The NIH believes the potential medical benefits of human pluripotent stem cell technology are compelling and worthy of pursuit in accordance with appropriate ethical standards." Reported by: Maulion, Marienelle Source: National Institutes of Health news release