A breakthrough in medicine stem cells. Human stem cells: applications in modern medicine

Experts have been studying stem cells for a long time, but for a long time it was not possible to create human embryonic stem cells by cloning. And so the report of an international group of researchers led by Masahito Tachibana, published in scientific journal Cell, provides another reason for wide discussion.

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On the one hand, the result of the study can become a contribution to the development of regenerative medicine, which will make it possible to cure diseases such as Parkinson’s disease with the help of stem cells. But at the same time, a serious question arises: perhaps the employees of the Oregon Research University and their colleagues created the prerequisites for human cloning?

Researchers reassure: a method that is effective for cloning stem cells (therapeutic cloning) is most likely not suitable for cloning people (reproductive cloning). “Yes, breakthroughs in cell nuclear transfer regularly spark widespread debate about the ethics of human cloning. But such cloning was not our task at all. And we don’t think that the results obtained can help anyone in reproductive cloning of people,” says Shukhrat Mitalipov, who took part in the study.

The point is the peculiarity - or, more precisely, the fragility - of human eggs, which for a long time did not allow therapeutic cloning. But experiments with rhesus monkey eggs brought scientists closer to solving this problem and, finally, to creating instructions for using a method that is also effective for human eggs. Oddly enough, in particular, the instructions talk about accelerating cell division when small amounts of caffeine are contained in their nutrient medium.

Dolly the Sheep

The basic technique has been around for a relatively long time - the so-called somatic transfer of the cell nucleus, first carried out by British researcher John Gurdon back in 1962. IN general outline the operation can be described as follows: the cell nucleus is removed from the egg, and with it the most of hereditary material. Then the nucleus of any other cell, for example, skin, is introduced into the cell. The resulting cell can begin to divide and develop as if it had been fertilized. An embryo appears: a clone of a creature from whose skin a cell with a nucleus was taken. Next, from such an embryo it is possible to create a line of embryonic stem cells capable of developing into all types of cells that exist in the human body.

In the mid-90s, scientists implanted such an embryo into the uterus of a sheep, which resulted in the appearance of a clone - Dolly the sheep. Even then, many feared that soon after this there would appear human clones or artificial babies. But so far this has not happened.

And in this regard, the study described in the Cell publication cannot be considered a major breakthrough. However, it represents the progress that was expected in the scientific community in this form. “As you know, this method works with many animals. And the very fact of its applicability for human cells, frankly speaking, does not surprise me,” notes, in particular, the head of the Institute of Neurophysiology at the Cologne University Clinic, Jurgen Hescheler.

“Reprogrammed” cells as an alternative

Rather, the efficiency of the process itself was unexpected for specialists: during the experiment, an unusually large number of eggs were converted into cell lines - according to calculations, the rejection rate should have been much higher. This is indicated, in particular, by Hans Scheler from the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine in Münster.

“It became obvious that man is not something special in this regard,” says Scheler. At the same time, he warns: “The results of the study have laid the foundation that theoretically allows us to move on to reproductive cloning of people – even with many technological reservations.” He is convinced that a global ban on reproductive cloning should have been adopted long ago.

It is assumed that the cell lines obtained as a result of reproductive cloning can be used in medicine. But this is no longer the only possibility of “manufacturing” cells of the required size that patients need, which could replace destroyed tissue. An option to solve the problem is the so-called induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) - cells of the patient's body that are processed in the laboratory so that they receive the properties of stem cells and are introduced for further transformation into certain tissues.

iPS cells make it possible to avoid the use of embryos and human eggs, the removal of which from a woman’s body poses a threat to her health. “Reprogramming” is associated with certain restrictions for their medical use; relevant studies have not been completed. However, the discoverer of the method, Japanese Shinya Yamanaka, received the Nobel Prize for this in 2012, together with John Gurdon, who first used cloning.

Stem cells from the umbilical cord (placenta)

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In order for your child to live a full and fulfilling healthy life, you can insure his life and health, but if an insured event occurs, then money cannot always help. It is much more important to prevent a possible serious illness, or more precisely, to take advantage of biological insurance.

This is an opportunity to prevent and cure many diseases, including very serious ones, which is fully provided to you by Cofrance Sarl.

Why can you trust the company? Cofrance Sarl is a diversified French company that has been successfully providing full complex services to clients from Russia: from legal support of any issues and obtaining a visa, life insurance, registration of a residence permit, support of banking transactions and assistance in filing tax returns to organizing childbirth in the best clinics in Monaco and Nice.

But above all,Cofrance Sarl– these are the services of a reliable European bank for storing stem cells, and the opportunity to be protected from “diseases”XXIcentury" for your future baby.

At the end of September 2016, Cofrance Sarl underwent voluntary certification on its own initiative and received a certificate of compliance with international quality standards No. СС.01.СС.СМК.039-16, including support for medical care and the birth process.

Modern childbirth in Europe is not only Better conditions and doctors, but also the opportunity get stem cells after the end of childbirth, which, if necessary, can be used decades later in medicinal purposes. This breakthrough in medicine was achieved thanks to the development of such areas as cell technologies.

Do not forget that, despite the fact that a person is a single whole, he consists of cells. Some of them, being affected, are not capable of recovery. Such structures are, for example, the myocardium and the brain. But it is possible to simply grow new tissues that will simply replace the damaged parts of the organ with full restoration of its function.

What can be treated with cell technology?

This is about stem cell treatment. If these techniques are carried out at a high scientific and medical level, for example, in Western European countries, the result is truly surprising. Currently, with the help of stem cell transplantation, success can be achieved in the treatment of, for example, the following diseases:

  • malignant neoplasms of the blood (acute leukemia);
  • multiple sclerosis and other diseases accompanied by the breakdown of myelin, and inevitably leading to disability;
  • consequences of acute cerebrovascular accidents;
  • chronic heart failure caused by defects of the heart muscle - myocardium;
  • diabetes;
  • Currently, research is being conducted on the use of stem cells in Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, other neurodegenerative diseases and lesions of the extrapyramidal nervous system;
  • treatment of cerebral palsy, brain tumors, Ewing's sarcoma.

Treatment of diseases with stem cells It’s completely natural, since in this case it’s not devices that are used, but what a healthy body consists of – normally functioning cells. What are we talking about and how can you get your own stem “sprouts” in order to have a “reliable supply” for the treatment of possible diseases in the future?

Stem cells

In our body, almost all organs are constantly renewed. But the tissues of an adult have already passed a period of development when any structure could be created from a small number of cells. This was during intrauterine development, and the active population of stem cells remained only in the red bone marrow, since blood is the tissue that must constantly be renewed much more often than others.

But dormant golden grains, or pluripotent stem cells, exist in adults, for example, in mesenchyme, or connective tissue. It is clear that the “creative potential” for cell proliferation and specialization was very high during intrauterine development, since the time was not far off when all organs developed from a single fertilized structure.

Where to find the most active cells?

But immediately after birth, it is still possible to obtain this cellular material from a newborn, which then, decades later, can save an adult from the disease. We are talking about obtaining and storing cellular material taken from the umbilical blood of a newborn. Conducted in a timely manner stem cell collection in a maternity hospital - this is perhaps the best insurance for the baby against serious illnesses in the future.

There is another opportunity to obtain effective cellular material from a child completely painlessly. And for this you do not need to do any invasive procedures or punctures. Stem cells literally “fall” into your and your baby’s hands. We are talking about fallen milk teeth, or more precisely, about the tissue in them called pulp. It contains those cells that are more active than the “dormant” mesenchymal units in the adult body. Perhaps, obtaining cells from baby teeth is the last chance to preserve the baby’s own genetic material for growth. How to do it?

Stem cell collection

Needless to say, everything related to cell technology must comply last word development of medical science, and even such a simple procedure as collecting material for storage. There can be no trifles in this matter. Therefore, the ideal option is to organize childbirth and blood stem cell collection where concern for human health corresponds to the standard of living and the development of medicine, that is, in the countries of the European Union. This invaluable opportunity is provided to you and your future baby by Cofrance, which has been helping our compatriots in Europe for many years.

Cord blood collection

How it happens stem cell collection during childbirth? For this purpose, the umbilical cord is used, which after crossing becomes a “draw”. It is from this that blood is drawn by trained staff of the maternity hospital, who do this constantly, since such concern for the future health of babies is no longer something unusual.

Stem cell collection happens along with cord blood, which undergoes sequential processing, testing for the presence of diseases (for example, HIV and viral hepatitis), and then enters a special laboratory in which the material is enriched, purified and prepared for storage. Cost of stem cell collection low, because this does not require any special equipment, but only a skill that is perfectly mastered by specialists - obstetricians.

How is the procedure for collecting cellular material?

All stages of obtaining cellular material have been worked out at Cofrance Sarl, and in this process, despite its simplicity, there are no “little things”: it all starts simply with your call to the company’s office.

You just have to express your interest, and you can assume that your future babies, or your children who have not yet lost their baby teeth, are already reliably protected. Cofrance Sarl will do everything necessary, and in a short time, since the company has long and successfully been engaged in this service, which is in demand in Europe, namely:

  • After your call, a consultation takes place at a time convenient for you. It is possible for a lawyer to visit you and explain to you all the points of interest and prepare a set of documents;
  • then an agreement is concluded in which all the necessary stages of providing the service will be discussed.

Health and life are priceless. And in this case, the cost of collecting and long-term storage of living stem cells does not exceed the cost of a budget brand of compact city car, but at the same time you get much more than a vehicle that will be sent for scrap in 10 years. This is the health of your children even after decades, when they themselves reach adulthood.

Before the birth, a special container for storing and transporting biological material is personally sent to you at the clinic where the birth is taking place, or if there are signs of imminent loss of a baby tooth, and after receiving it, the container is delivered to the laboratory for isolating a pure culture and its enrichment, and then to a biological bank for Stem cell storage. You can get acquainted with the provision of services to support a comfortable birth in France with the support of Cofrance Sarl on the official site.

After being placed in a stem cell bank, your children can be considered insured against many diseases for life.


Stem cell storage

Undoubtedly, stem cell storage– this is the most important stage, since it can last for many years and decades. All this time, the cell culture “sleeps”, immersed in a liquid nitrogen in a special institution called a “stem cell bank”. After processing and preparation in a special way, the cells retain their activity and can be ready for transplantation at any time. Cofrance also takes care of all legal support for the storage and possible use of cell culture.

In conclusion, we can advise those parents who care about the health of their children the following: cell cultures should also be used for treatment in clinics in Europe and the USA, since in Russian Federation for cell transplantation simply has not yet been created the legislative framework. We hope that such conditions will also appear in our country over time. But at the present stage of healthcare development, perhaps best offer Our compatriots are helped to preserve their health, and perhaps even the lives of their children, by the Cofrance company, which for many years has been helping Russians to freely use the services of French medicine.

Access to revolutionary cell therapies that can cure diseases that cannot be treated with conventional treatments. Benefits from stem cells in diseases such as ataxia, optic nerve atrophy, spinal cord injury, type 2 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, etc. Avoid knee and hip replacement with stem cell therapies.

A quick look at the benefits

  • fast and free medical report on your health status
  • education abroad for doctors and hospital staff.
  • JCI, NABH and NABI accredited hospitals.
  • pay directly to hospitals, transparent billing.
  • the most advanced surgical procedures at the most affordable prices.

Stem cell therapy is an intervention strategy that introduces new stem cells into damaged tissue to treat disease or injury. Many researchers believe that stem cell treatments have the potential to change the face of human disease and alleviate suffering. The ability of stem cells to self-renew and give rise to subsequent generations with variable degrees of differentiation potential, has significant potential for producing tissues that can potentially replace diseased individuals. and damaged areas of the body, with minimal risk of rejection and side effects.

Stem cell technology offers hope for effective treatment of malignant and benign diseases through a rapidly developing field that brings together cell biologists, geneticists and clinicians. Stem cells are defined as totipotent progenitor cells capable of self-renewal and multi-lineage. Stem cells survive well and show resistance in culture, which then makes them ideal targets for in vitro manipulation. Research into solid tissue stem cells has not made the same progress as hematopoietic stem cells due to the difficulty of reproducing the necessary and accurate 3D composition and tight cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrix interactions that exist in solid organs.

What stem cells?

Many people wonder what stem cells are used for. Of the stem cells, the most notable feature is its ability to multiply into completely new, normal and even younger cells. As a result, people can use their contradictory or allogeneic stem cells, or organs, or stem cells derived tissues or organs, replacing diseased or aged tissue or organs, thus allowing stem cells to treat a wide range of diseases and injuries, many of which not amenable to traditional treatment medical methods. In addition to proliferating new cells and replacing cells, the important role of mesenchymal stem or tissue calls is to provide the body with other cellular factors in porcine form. Stem cell therapy uses these stem cells (tissue or mesenchymal) to help with the following functions:

  • Immune regulation
  • Reduced cell apoptosis (death)
  • Stimulate the differentiation of the patient's own stem cells
  • Stimulate neoangiogenesis
    (Growth of blood vessels, resulting in increased blood flow to damaged areas)
  • Reduce scarring
  • Increasing the efficiency of intercellular electrical signals transduction.

It is important to note that there is generally very little concern by informed or unbiased scientists about stem cells derived from umbilical cord blood, brain tissue or bone marrow, as opposed to embryonic/fetal stem cells. Researchers are now finding a way to use stem cells to attack tumors and treat cancer patients. All batches of stem cells undergo final testing before they are packaged for clinical use. During this cell therapy process, they are tested for effectiveness through cell counting and viability assays. The purity of stem cells is confirmed by differentiation assay, sterility and testing for the presence or absence of markers. A comprehensive management quality assessment also includes tests for mycoplasmas, endotoxins and karyotyping. Once the stem cells are deemed safe, each block is eligible for therapy.

Stem cell delivery methods:

How doctors inject stem cells

Medical staff in our partner hospitals use various ways for the administration of stem cells, including intravenous (IV), intrathecal (i), intramuscular and intravascular interventional infections. A combination of the above methods will provide the best approach for studying safety and effectiveness. The following may be a protocol, doctors at the treatment center prescribe a certain combination that is best suited to treat the underlying disease after an initial check upon arrival. The injections are minimally invasive and highly effective in delivering stem cells to damaged areas of the body. Detailed information about each type of injection can be found below.

Types of stem cell injections:

Intravenous (IV) injection

With the Intravenous (IV) delivery method, it is a simple process that is familiar to most patients. A line of tubing with a catheter tip thread over a needle is placed into the patient's vein. Once the correct placement is obtained, the needle portion is removed and a flexible plastic catheter is inserted into the vein from the attached tube. The stem call suspension will be administered through an IV after Dexamethasone, which may be administered to avoid a possible allergic reaction.
Typically, no sedation is required for this procedure. In total, the IV injection process takes no more than 45 minutes. The most common risks of this procedure include the formation of a small hematoma or blood clot at the injection site. Since sterile procedures are used throughout the entire process, the risk of infection is minimal.

Intrathecal (IT) injections

Intrathecal (intrathecal) injections are also often called punctures. This is a procedure used to access cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from the brain and spinal cord and helps deliver stem cells directly to the FGC, bypassing the blood-brain barrier. Our doctors have determined that this is the least invasive method of delivering stem cells directly to the central nervous system. FGO is used by the body to provide protection to the brain and spinal cord, limiting the potential for damage to these vital areas.

CT – guided spinal cord injection

For patients with spinal cord injury (SCI), especially those diagnosed with complete SCI or incomplete SCI with severe disease, CT-guided intraspinal cord injection of stem cells (if deemed necessary by the physician based on medical condition) will be performed to identify injury sites.

Intramuscular injections

Our doctors have found that intramuscular injections of stem cells can help patients with muscular dystrophy achieve good health outcomes. These injections are given directly into the muscles of the affected area(s). The delivery method is also used for the treatment of lower extremity ischemia and in patients diabetes mellitus feet.

Intravascular interventional injections

Intravascular interventional injections can place stem cells directly in target organs or tissues using imaging while the patient is under local anesthesia. The procedure can be used for myocardium, cardiomyopathy, liver cirrhosis and chronic renal failure and others.

Intra-articular injections

Retrobulbar injection

This injection into the soft tissue is present behind the eyeball in certain diseases such as optic nerve hypoplasia, optic nerve atrophy, etc.

Side effectsstem cell therapy

Possible complications of treatment

We understand that patients may have concerns about adverse reactions to treatment. Side effects in our patients consistent with the expected response to treatment are: fever, headache, leg pain, diarrhea, vomiting, allergic reactions. Less than four percent of patients experience any of these symptoms.

Stem cell therapy as an alternative for knee and hip joint surgery

Stem cells have brought quite a revolution in the treatment of joint diseases. Until now, the only treatment for a worn out hip or knee joint is a joint replacement procedure, i.e. knee replacement with hip replacement. If you have experienced injury to the knee meniscus, knee cartilage, ACL or MCL, or have chronic knee pain due to past injuries or arthritis, you may be a good candidate for knee stem cell or platelet procedures. Traditional options for patients suffering from such problems are arthroscopic knee surgery to repair tear ligaments, or total knee replacement. With both surgeries, months of rehabilitation and physical therapy are required to restore strength and mobility, and the patient must be aware and willing to accept the risks.

As an alternative to knee or stifle surgery, stem cell therapy can help relieve knee pain and the conditions that cause it. Injection procedures.

Unlike a traditional knee or hip replacement, the patient's stem cell injection is usually recommended to walk the same day, and most patients experience very little downtime from the procedure.

Powerful cord blood stem cells help build ligament regeneration and improve lubrication and retention in the knee or hip joint where it is injected. And the patient can return to a normal lifestyle without having to undergo a rather painful and expensive knee or hip replacement procedure.

Cell therapy can be provided on the following joint or bone conditions:-

  • Arthrosis (knee and other joints)
  • Avascular necrosis of the femoral head (AVN) and various bones
  • Tendinitis and partial ligament tears (sports injuries)

The innovative therapy offered on an individual basis consists of a combination of two procedures, i.e. implantation of MSCs (mesenchymal stem cells) as well as PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) administered through the intra-articular route.
The procedure is performed with or without an overnight stay, as recommended.

Results from clinical studies of pure mesenchymal stem cell populations have been encouraging. The researchers reported that PRP enhances the proliferation and differentiation of potential resident cells and allows resident stem cells to localize to the area of ​​interest to promote tissue repair. The research results were measured as:

Radiographic cartilage thickness parameter
Pain assessment
Quality of life indicators
Mobility and stiffness of joints parameters, etc.

The cost avergae for two joints is 6500 US dollars, and for one joint 3500 US dollars.

Some serious diseases or disorders are treated with stem cell therapy:

Spinal cord injury:

Stem cell therapy has been used to treat patients diagnosed with spinal cord contusion since 2005.
The goal of our treatment is to regenerate nerve cells that have been damaged in the patient's spinal cord after injury using stem cell transplantation. To do this, stem cells are injected into large quantities through droppers and punctures in order to more specifically target the damaged area.

When necessary and in addition to stem cell transplantation, we provide advanced epidural stimulation technology, which helps electrical signals bypass the site of injury, weakening connections between the brain and parts of the body below the injury.
Please note that before considering stem cell treatment and epidural stimulation, the patient must have undergone any surgery recommended by local doctors such as surgery spine.

Ataxia:

Stem cell therapy has been used to treat patients diagnosed with ataxia since 2007. Over the past few years there have been Various types Ataxias include, for example, SCA1, SCA2, SCA3 (Machado-Joseph ataxia), SCA6, Frederick ataxia and ataxia caused by traumatic brain injury.

Patients with Ataxia see their condition progressively worsen due to the constant loss of nerve cells in their brain/spinal cord. Thus, the goal of our ataxia therapy is to regenerate the patient's lost nerve cells through stem cell transplantation. For this stem cells are administered in large quantities through droppers and punctures in order to more specifically target damaged areas.

Optic nerve diseases:

Treatments completed: over 500 (as of 2012)
Since 2007, our stem cells have been used in the treatment of patients with visual impairment. Previously treated conditions include (but are not limited to):

  • Optic nerve hypoplasia (ONH)
  • Septoptic dysplasia (SOD) with ONH
  • Optic nerve atrophy (it)
  • Leber's Hereditary Optic Neuropathy (LHON)
  • Retinitis pigmentosa (RP)
  • Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP)
  • diabetic retinopathy

The normal therapy protocol for visually impaired patients consists of umbilical cord stem cells injected intravenously and LP. Our partner hospital doctors also perform retrobulbar injections for selected groups of patients. This process involves the introduction of stem cells into the retrobulbar space of the orbit. Our doctors can tell you after a medical review if this injection is an option for treatment. There is room for minimal/improvement and we encourage patients and staff to keep realistic expectations.
General Protocol: Below is a general protocol for patients with visual impairment. Please keep in mind that this is an example only and injections and cell types may vary slightly depending on the patient's condition. Some patients may receive direct retrobulbar injection (as determined by physicians' medical review).

Multiple sclerosis:

Stem cell therapy has been used to treat all types of multiple sclerosis since 2005. Beginning in 2015, the stem cell improved MS protocol uses a significantly higher and more effective dose of stem cells to more effectively treat multiple sclerosis while minimizing the time and cost of this treatment.
The goal of our treatment is to regenerate myelin sheaths (some of the neurons affect multiple sclerosis) and modulate the immune response using stem cell transplantation. To do this, stem cells are administered in large quantities through IVs and punctures in order to maintain high efficiency and safety.
It is important to remember that treatment is not a cure. Multiple sclerosis is a progressive disease, and the goal of treatment is to temporarily reverse the symptoms of the disease in order to achieve best quality life. After receiving your medical information, doctors may give you additional advice regarding your specific case.

Type 2 Diabetes:

Diabetes mellitus causes persistent metabolic disorders. It is characterized high level glucose in the blood, resulting in an inability to produce and/or use insulin. ß cells in a healthy pancreas and release insulin, which controls blood glucose levels. The number of ß-cells is maintained by constant apoptosis and proliferation. However, patients with diabetes have lost their delicate balance in the room. Therefore, protecting the remaining cells and adding enough ß-cells is the concentration of cell therapy for diabetes. Diabetes awareness is necessary as uncontrolled diabetes can lead to devastating complications such as cardiovascular disease, blindness, kidney failure, nerve damage, and diabetic foot. Currently, many traditional treatments are available to treat diabetes, such as insulin injections and oral hypoglycemic drugs.

Brain damage

Stroke and traumatic brain injury lead to cell death, characterized by the loss of neurons and oligodendrocytes in the brain. The healthy adult brain contains neural stem cells, which are divided into maintaining the total number of stem cells or progenitor cells that will become. In healthy adult animals, progenitor cells migrate to the brain and function primarily to maintain neural populations for smell. During pregnancy and after injury, this system is regulated by growth factors and can increase the rate at which new brain substances are formed. Although the reparative process appears to begin after brain injury, significant recovery is rarely observed in adults, indicating a lack of reliability.
Stem cells can also be used to treat brain degeneration such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease.

cancer

Development of strategies gene therapy for the treatment of intracranial tumors offers much promise, and has been shown to be successful in treating some dogs, although research in this area is still in its early stages. Using traditional methods, brain cancer is difficult to treat because it spreads so quickly. Researchers at Harvard Medical School transplanted nerve cells into the brains of rodents that had received intracranial tumors. Within a few days, the cells migrated into the cancerous tumor and produced cytosine deaminase, an enzyme that converts the non-toxic prodrug into a chemotherapy agent. As a result, the administered substance is able to reduce tumors by 81 percent. The stem cells are not differentiated and have not turned tumorigenic.

Spinal cord injury

Spinal cord injury treated with stem cells A team of Korean researchers reported on November 25, 2003 that they transplanted multipotent adult stem cells from umbilical cord blood into a patient with a spinal cord injury and that after the surgery she could walk independently without difficulty. The patient has been unable to stand for about 19 years. In an unprecedented clinical trial, scientists isolated stem cells from umbilical cord blood and then injected them into the damaged part of the spinal cord.

heart damage

Treating heart damage with stem cell therapy, Bodo-Ekehard's pioneering work is difficult to live in Holland, and the identification of hundreds of factual contradictions has been discredited. Among the few clinical studies that have reported that stem cell therapy is safe and effective, powerful effects have been reported in only a few laboratories, but this covers old and recent heart attacks, as well as heart failure not due to myocardial infarction. And although the first studies on animals showed a remarkable therapeutic effect.
Stem cell therapy for the treatment of myocardial infarction typically uses autologous bone marrow stem cells (either a specific type or all), however other types of adult stem cells may be used, such as adipose stem cells. Stem cell therapy for treating heart disease has been commercially available on at least five continents since 2007.

Possible recovery mechanisms include:

  • Generation of cardiac muscle cells.
  • Stimulates the growth of new blood vessels to fill damaged heart tissue.
  • Secretion of growth factors.
  • Help through some other mechanism.
  • Possibly damage to adult bone marrow cells. differentiation of cardiac muscle cells.

Hematopoiesis (formation of blood cells)

Blood cells, the formation of cell therapy specificity of human immunity - cellular repertoire, which allows the human body to protect itself from rapidly adapting antigens. However, the immune system is susceptible to degradation in the pathogenesis of the disease, and due to that important role which it plays in general defense, its degradation is often fatal to the organism as a whole. Hematopoietic cell diseases are diagnosed and classified according to a subspecialty pathology known as hematopathology. The specificity of immune cells, which allows them to recognize foreign antigens, causing additional problems in the treatment of immune diseases. A match between donor and recipient must be made for a successful transplant, but matches are not uncommon, even between first-degree relatives. Research using both adult hematopoietic stem cells and embryonic stem cells provides insight into possible mechanisms and treatments for many of these diseases.

Fully mature human red blood cells can be created ex vivo using hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), which are the precursors of blood cells. In this process, HSCs grown together with stromal cells, creating an environment that mimics the conditions of bone marrow, natural object red blood cells and growth. Erythropoietin growth factor is added, drawing stem cells to complete terminal differentiation into blood cells. Further research into this technique should have potential benefits for gene therapy, blood transfusion and topical medicine."

Baldness

Hair follicles contain stem cells, and some researchers predict that research into these follicle stem cells could lead to advances in the treatment of baldness through the activation of stem cell progenitor cells. This procedure is expected to work on the already existing activation of stem cells in the scalp. Later treatment may be able to simply signal the follicle stem cells to release chemical signals into neighboring follicle cells that have been reduced by the aging process, which in turn responds to these signals, making hair healthy again and again. More recently, Dr. Aeron Potter from the University of California claims that stem cell treatment has resulted in significant and noticeable improvement in follicular hair growth. The results of his experiments, reviewed in the journal Science.

Missing teeth

In 2004, scientists from King's College London found a way to grow full teeth in mice and were able to grow them in the laboratory. Researchers are confident that this technology can be used to grow living teeth into humans.

Missing Teeth – Stem Cell Treatment In theory, stem cells taken from a patient can be coaxed in the laboratory to become a tooth bud which, if lodged in the gums, will result in a new tooth and is expected to grow within two months. It will fuse with the jaw and eject chemical substances, which stimulate the nerves and blood vessels to connect to it. The process is similar to what happens when people grow out their original adult teeth. However, many issues remain unsolved before stem cells can be a choice for replacing missing teeth in the future.”

Wound healing

Stem cells can also be used to stimulate the growth of human tissue. In an adult, wounded tissue is most often replaced by scar tissue, which is characterized by scattered collagen structures in the skin, loss of hair follicles and irregular vascular structures. In case of injury to fetal tissue, however, the injured tissue is replaced by normal tissue through the activity of stem cells. Possible way For tissue regeneration in adults, this is where the stem cells “seed” into the tissue “soil” bed in the wound and allow the stem cells to stimulate differentiation in the tissue bed of the cell. This method produces healing responses more similar to fetal wound healing than adult scar tissue formation. Researchers are still studying various aspects of the tissue "soil" that promote regeneration.

sterility

treatment of infertility with therapyCulture of stem cells from human embryonic stem cells in mitotically inactivated porcine ovarian fibroblasts (stump) causes differentiation of germ cells (precursor cells of eggs and sperm), which is confirmed by gene expression analysis.

Human embryonic stem cells have been stimulated to form sperm-like cells, but are still slightly damaged or in the wrong format. This may refer to azoospermia.

In 2012, oogonia stem cells were isolated from adult mice and human ovaries and demonstrated the ability to form mature oocytes. These cells have the potential to treat infertility.”

The concept of “stem cells” entered scientific terminology more than 100 years ago, but they are used for treatment various diseases they became relatively recent. Interest in stem cells increased when their unique ability to rapidly reproduce and take on almost any “shape”—differentiation—was discovered.

Stem cells- a hierarchy of special cells of living organisms, each of which is capable of subsequently changing

(differentiate) in a special way (that is, acquire specialization and further develop like an ordinary cell) (Fig. 4.21).

The term " stem cell"was introduced into scientific use by the Russian histologist Alexander Maksimov (hematopoietic stem cell). At the meeting of the Society of Hematologists in Berlin June 1, 1909 he introduced the concept of “Stammzelle”, meaning by this definition a lymphocyte in the broader sense of the word, as a cell capable of being a stem cell in the modern sense of the word.

IN 1999 Science magazine recognized the discovery of embryonic stem cells as the third most significant event in biology after deciphering the double helix of DNA and the Human Genome Program.

Rice. 4.21.

Stem cells have two important characteristics, which distinguish them from other cells. First, they are unspecialized cells that renew themselves over time through cell division.

Second, under certain physiological or experimental conditions they can be induced to become cells with specialized functions, such as cardiac muscle cells or insulin-synthesizing pancreatic cells.

Stem cells differ in their potency - spectrum of possible directions of differentiation.

Totipotent In the process of transformation, stem cells give rise to all the many types of cells in the body (embryonic cells) (Fig. 4.22). Pluriotentnys(adult) stem cells are capable of producing many different types differentiated cells in a specific tissue type (bone marrow cells) (Fig. 4.23).


Rice. 4.22.

Rice. 4.23.

Adult stem cells are obtained from adult tissues, the umbilical cord and even from fetal tissues, i.e. their source is not necessarily a literal adult organism. Used for therapeutic purposes through bone marrow transplantation in the treatment of blood diseases (cancer, hemophilia). They are used for skin grafting for burns (a section of the victim’s skin is removed and stored in culture, the graft grows, and is then applied to the affected area.

Embryonic stem cells have a major advantage over adult cells: they can be grown in culture. Such cells are isolated from the embryo at the blastula stage (about 150 cells forming a hollow sphere - blastocyte cells or blastomeres). Of these, about 30 cells can be used to create an embryonic cell line.

The lifespan of embryonic stem cells is 7 days. After the seventh day of pregnancy, they cannot give rise to all types of tissue. Theoretically, each embryonic stem cell can give rise to an entire organism, but in practice this has not been proven. Indirect evidence of this is the birth of identical twins.

At the moment, a number of areas for the use of stem cells in medicine have been formed: ischemic diseases; Raynaud's disease - angiotrophoneurosis with predominant damage to small terminal arteries and arterioles; neuralgia; systemic lupus erythematosus; consequences of injuries and burns; consequences of strokes, stroke prevention; heart attacks, their prevention; psoriasis, dermatitis; Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease; arthritis, arthrosis, osteochondrosis; diabetes; eye diseases.

Scientists around the world call the 21st century the century of biomedicine. And this is understandable, because this area of ​​medicine is developing at incredible speed. It’s not for nothing that last years for discoveries in the field of cell technology, scientists received 7 Nobel Prizes! And this is far from the limit, because the prospects for stem cell treatment today look absolutely limitless! But first things first.

Historical reference

Stem cells discovered by Russian scientist Alexander Maksimov back in 1909. It was he who became the founder of regenerative medicine. However, the first operation to transplant such cells was carried out much later, in the 70s of the last century. And although scientists are still arguing about the safety of using stem cells, beginning of XXI century, 1,200 operations involving transplantation of stem cells taken from the umbilical cord were performed in the world. In Russia, such treatment methods were treated with caution for a long time, and therefore the first permitted operation was carried out only in 2010. Today in our country there are several clinics offering this method for the treatment of a variety of diseases.

What are stem cells and why are they needed?

Stem cells are immature (undifferentiated) cells found in all multicellular organisms. A feature of such cells is their unique ability to divide, forming new stem cells, as well as differentiate, that is, turn into cells of certain organs and tissues. In fact, stem cells are a kind of reserve reserve of our body, thanks to which the process of cellular renewal is carried out.

The use of stem cells in the treatment of diseases is a real breakthrough in modern medicine. Today there is reliable evidence that stem cells can help treat cancer, atherosclerosis, stroke, myocardial infarction, autoimmune and allergic diseases, diabetes and endocrine disorders, spinal and brain injuries. Stem cells improve the condition of the skin, bones and cartilage tissue, strengthen the immune system and increase potency. Moreover, today there is a positive practice of treating Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases with the help of these biological substances!

Moreover, stem cells make it possible to get rid of a serious illness once and for all, which is much cheaper than trying to treat the disease with medications year after year. And this fact has long been confirmed by patients who, using this method, got rid of rheumatoid arthritis and bronchial asthma.

Moreover, with the help of these biological substances, infertility can now be successfully treated. Specialists create cells that temporarily suppress a woman's immune function, as a result of which the body does not reject the fetus. According to statistics, every second woman who decided on this method of combating infertility became pregnant and gave birth to a beautiful baby. As you can see, the scope of application of these amazing cells seems simply limitless!

The essence of treatment

Of course, cell therapy is not a panacea for all ailments. Treatment with such cells has a number of contraindications and cannot be used without a balanced approach.

What is the essence of this method? It turns out that miracle cells have two important functions - they divide themselves and activate the reproduction of other cells in the body. The point of treatment is that when they enter a diseased organ, the cells trigger the immune system and release bioactive substances that activate the affected organ’s own stem cells to renew. As a result of the replacement of old cells with new ones, the regeneration process occurs, thanks to which the organ is gradually restored.


Types of stem cells

Several types of miracle cells are known to medicine. These are fetal, embryonic, postnatal and many other immature cells. The most commonly used treatments are hematopoietic cells (HSCs) and mesenchymal cells (MSCs), which are obtained from bone marrow, including pelvic bones, ribs, as well as adipose tissue and some other tissues that have a good blood supply. The choice in favor of these cells was made for a reason. According to scientists, treatment with hematopoietic and mesenchymal cells is highly effective and safe, which means that there is no possibility that they will mutate and provoke the development of a tumor, which is quite possible when fetal or embryonic cells are introduced.

But it’s no secret that with age, the number of stem cells in the human body becomes less and less. For example, if an embryo has one cell per 10 thousand normal ones, then a 70-year-old person has one cell per 7-8 million. Thus, only 30 thousand mesenchymal cells are released into the blood of an adult every day. This is only enough to eliminate minor violations, but is completely insufficient to protect against serious illnesses or slow down the aging process.

However, stem cell treatment makes it possible to achieve the impossible. According to modern scientists, when stem cells are introduced into the body, the necessary “regenerative fund” is created, thanks to which a person gets better and gets rid of diseases. This use of stem cells by doctors is very similar to filling up a car with fuel. Doctors simply inject stem cells into a vein, as if they “fill” the body with high-quality fuel, thanks to which a person gets rid of diseases and lives longer!

On average, treatment of diseases involves the introduction into the blood of about 1 million cells per 1 kg of weight. To combat severe pathologies, the patient should be injected with 2-3 million stem cells for every 1 kg of weight. According to doctors, this is a natural mechanism for treating diseases, which will become the main method of treating almost all pathologies in the very near future.

Myths and reality

Despite the successes that biomedical specialists have achieved to date, mistrust in this method of treating diseases is still high. Perhaps this is due to the information that periodically appears in the media about famous personalities, whose attempts to treat or rejuvenate the body ended sadly. Doctors at private clinics who are licensed to treat with such cells classify these information rumors as “inflated sensations,” reasonably noting that the messages do not contain information about the method of treatment and the type of cells used. Experts from scientific government institutions resolutely refuse to comment on such rumors. Perhaps precisely because of the lack complete information society and are torn by doubts about the safety of such treatment.

However, people who agreed to stem cell therapy are still called “guinea pigs.” According to the head physician of one of the clinics providing such treatment, Yuri Kheifets: “It is simply incorrect to talk about our patients as guinea pigs. I know of cases of allergies to this material, but the allergy was caused not by the cells, but by the nutrient medium that got into the cell culture. But I haven't heard of a single case fatal outcome after the introduction of such cells!

The specialist is supported by Doctor of Medical Sciences Professor Alexander Teplyashin. According to the scientist: “In Europe and the USA they have already begun to realize all the benefits and effectiveness that stem cells bring. That is why our specialists, who have been involved in stem cell treatment for a long time, are extremely in demand in these countries. “We still have mistrust in this method of treatment, and this is very upsetting.”

Scientists draw attention to the fact that the debate regarding the benefits and harms of antibiotics has not yet subsided, but it is known what kind of catastrophe humanity would face if it were not for these medicines. The same thing happens with stem cells. At the same time, experts note that not all stem cells are suitable for therapy.


Price issue

Another question haunts ordinary people. It seems that cell treatment has been going on for a long time, the technology has been thoroughly studied, and new clinics providing stem cell treatment are sprouting like mushrooms. Why does therapy remain so expensive?

Experts answer that growing stem cells is a long-term and quite expensive process. In addition, the state does not finance such projects, which is why they develop much more slowly.

It is true that progress is being observed in this process. Today in Russia there are cellular drugs, the cost of which is equal to the cost of traditional treatment. For example, a product to combat arthrosis costs no more than a gel intended for injection into a diseased joint. At the same time, the drug allows you to treat the joint, while the gel fights only pain. However, all components for growing stem cells in our country are currently purchased in the USA.

If we talk in detail about the cost of treatment, then the data from various sources differ in many respects. For example, according to information from Moskovsky Komsomolets, stem cell therapy in Russia today ranges from $10,000 to $12,000.

At the same time, the website of the Moscow clinic “Newest Medicine” states that the full cost of cell therapy or a course of revitalization will cost $30,000–32,000.

At the same time, a number of companies involved in organizing stem cell treatment in Germany provide data according to which full course treatment will cost the patient $9,000–15,000.

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