Regenerative medicine
There are 6 cell populations present in cord vein blood with varying levels of stem cell content.
In addition to hematopoietic line cells, the other 5 populations of stem cells, if differentiated in vitro,
produce a series of cell types, such as, for example:
| Nerve cells |
ictus, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease, spine marrow damage, cerebral paralysis |
| Cardiomyocytes |
Acute Myocardial Infarction, cardiovascular pathologies |
| Osteoblasts |
Bone, tendon and cartilage regeneration |
| Pancreatic cells |
Type 1 Diabetes |
| Hepatocytes |
Liver damage |
| Endothelial Cells |
Ischemic pathologies |
| Epithelial Cells |
Cornea transplants, retina transplants, pulmonary emphysema, cystic fibrosis, epithelial regeneration |
In medical jargon, the realm of application is known as “regenerative medicine” and is the key to
future therapeutic application of stem cells.
Cell Therapy
Cell therapy foresees the use of stem cells as pharmacological carriers and carriers for the development
of gene therapy (replacement of an altered gene with a healthy gene).
Tissue engineering
Tissue engineering is the regeneration of human body tissue by seeding stem cells on scaffolds of
suitable materials and characteristics, cultivating them in specific bioreactors, until the scaffold is
colonised and new tissue (extra-cellular matrix) is produced. Tissue engineering procedures are not
yet able to eliminate the need for prostheses to restore function to damaged tissues or organs.
However, it is beginning to find some applications, for example in the creation of skin and cornea,
or in bone, cartilage and ligament regeneration.
Pharmacological trials
An important, new step is the use of stem cells for the in vitro testing of medicinal products, instead
of testing them directly on the patient. This is vitally important in choosing personalised chemotherapy
treatment for tumours.
Diagnosis
Diagnosing a pathology requires knowledge of family medical history. Stem cells are essential witnesses
for the retroactive assessment of an infectious disease or tumour occurring in post-natal
life.
Ex vivo expansion
This technique is based on the use of bioreactors or selective cytofluorometry and aims to optimise
the amplification of a type of stem cells and explore its differentiation potential, with the aim of
increasing flexibility and applicability of tissue regeneration strategies. The possibility of expanding
blood cells ex vivo is a tool for expanding the transplantation use of these cells. To date, clinical
data on ex vivo expansion are still rare and issues such as the niche effect (interactions between
different cell types), the addition of growth factors such as cytokines and “serum-free” culture
medium remain open.
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