What is Stem Cell Transplant?
2011-07-08 20:58
Stem Cell Transplant can be widely used in disease treatment. It is an advanced treatment technology and plays more and more important role in disease treatment, especially for those troublesome diseases. Stem cells can be subdivided into Totipotent stem cells, Pluripotent stem cells and Unipotent stem cells.
Stem cells have varying differentiation potential, referred to as potency. Totipotent stem cells arise from the fusion of egg and sperm cell and are remarkable because they can differentiate into any cell type. Pluripotent stem cells are close descendents of totipotent stem cells. They have wide differentiation powers, but are limited to cell types of the 3 germ layers (ectoderm, endoderm, mesoderm). Differentiation of multipotent stem cells is limited to a specific subtype of cell. For example, hematopoietic stem cells can only differentiate into blood cell types. Unipotent stem cells can only differentiate into 1 cell type, but they retain the capacity for self-renewal which distinguishes them from non-stem cells.
Embryonic stem cell lines (ES cell lines) are pluripotent and can give rise to any of the cell types present in adults when given the correct stimulation. If no differentiation signal is given, cells in culture will continue to divide indefinitely, with each daughter cell also being pluripotent. There are no human therapies available using embryonic stem cells due to various challenges including lack of government funding, the potential to produce tumors, transplant rejection, and occasionally unpredictable differentiation.
Stem Cell Transplantation Therapy method has the advantages of being easily accessible in material, low cost, stable in efficacy, well reproducible, and with no rejection and so on. Stem cell transplantation therapy is an effective way to treat diabetes.
Cord blood stem cells are derived from the blood in placenta and umbilical cord after baby is delivered and the umbilical cord is ligatured and cut off. Over the last decade, it is found out in the research that cord blood contains hemopoietic stem cells which can rebuild human hemopoietic and immune system. It can be used for hemopoietic stem cell transplant to treat different diseases. Therefore, cord blood has become the main source of hemopoietic stem cells, especially the main source of hemopoietic stem cells without any genetic connection. It is also a kind of important human biological resources. Cord Blood Stem Cells have the following characters: 1. Collecting cord blood will not affect or damage the puerpera and neonate. 2. Stem cells are original cells which have the strong character of proliferation.3. Stem cells will not cause cancer cell and have low spread risk for virus and pathogenic microorganism. 4. Stem cells not involving the arguments such as social ethics, legal disputes etc.
As stem cells have self-renewing ability, that is they can regenerate into daughter cells which have the same characteristic as those original stem cells. Then these daughter cells can differentiate into functional cell of various human tissues. Therefore, Stem Cell Transplantation has a promising future in disease treatment, especially kidney disease treatment.
In our hospital, we have Cord Blood Stem Cell, Umbilical Mesenchymal Stem Cell and Bone Marrow Stem Cell. Clinical practice has proven that Stem Cell Transplant is more effective in kidney disease treatment. If you want to know more about Stem Cell Transplant or our Stem Cell Center, please feel free to contact us online or email us at kidneycn186@hotmail.com. May you have a good day.
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