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Stem Cell Research and its Importance

Over the last few years there has been lots of research done regarding stem cell research, to regenerate and fix damaged organs in the body. With the help of stem cell research there has been much discovered about the body in general which helps to advance the cause of medicine helping to finding cures and treatments for different diseases and disorders. To show some of the research I am writing this blog post on, “Targeted Repair of Heart Injury by Stem Cells Fused with Platelet Nanovesicles.”

            I have chosen this paper because it illustrates different discoveries scientist have had while finding a way to potentially help stem cells to regenerate cardiac tissue following a myocardial infarction or a heart attack. Through the course of this paper, Junnan Tang and the other scientists he was working with talked about one of the hardest issues regarding cardiac stem cells which is the fact that they have a hard time implanting. The heart is a powerful pump that constantly has blood surging through it and into the body. While stem cells can be placed in the heart, they have a hard time repairing the damage because as the blood pumps through the heart it takes the stem cells that have been planted.

            While looking for ways to helps stem cells implant in the heart they discovered that the platelets of the blood were naturally enhanced to go to the site of heart damage resulting from a myocardial infarction. After discovering this about platelets they did more research “to evaluate the natural MI-homing ability of platelets.” (Junnan et al) After discovering this about platelets, scientist decided to take the nanovesicles from platelets and attach them to the surface of cardiac stem cells creating platelet nanovesicles of cardiac stem cells, PNV-CSC. They discovered that together the nanovesicles and cardiac stem cells were effective because they had a higher ability to bind and their combination didn’t have any negative effects.

            This research is important in helping to advance the medical field in a few ways. First it is showing how through stem cells we are learning more about the body. Second it shows the importance of promoting stem cells research because it helps to repair and regenerate tissues. Stem cell research is a vital part of the future of medicine and it is great to see what impact it holds now and will hold in the future. - K.G.

            http://www.nature.com.ezproxy.uvu.edu/articles/s41551-017-0182-x#Sec11

Comments

  1. UnknownApril 27, 2018 at 1:18 PM

    I know very little about stem cell research but from what I have heard, there is an ethical debate that is often brought up about the topic. Was this study limited by any ethical dilemmas when harvesting the stem cells? Also, were did the stem cells they used come from?
    -KS

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownApril 27, 2018 at 7:08 PM

      Yes there is a ethical debate about the harvesting of stem cells. The biggest problem people have with it is the time when Humans have the most Stem Cells in their bodies, is in the form of embryos. People tend to focus on that more than anything. Since it could be harvested from dead babies people were all up in arms. This really doesn't have to happen though, because they have found many places to get Stem Cells from, example bone marrow.
      MR
      https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/bone-marrow.../stem-cells/art-20048117

      Delete
  2. UnknownApril 27, 2018 at 4:39 PM

    I very much agree that stem cell research is very important! Recently I was reading an article about the "Ghost Heart". This is where they take a pig heart and decelluarize it making it have a white color and then they are researching on using stem cells in order to keep the heart healthy and ready for transplant into humans! So crazy to me that medicine is progressing at such an incredible rate. Stem cell research is definitely a large factor in the future of medicine.

    Here's the link to an article about the Ghost Heart:
    http://www.cleveland.com/healthfit/index.ssf/2012/08/ghost_heart_a_framework_for_gr.html

    -KK

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownApril 27, 2018 at 6:28 PM

    In my opinion Stem Cells are going to be the next big thing in the health field. First looking at what they can already do, Stem Cells Researchers have grown and surgically implanted a woman's esophagus. The Stem Cells ability to be come most all if not all cells in the body is amazing. By doing this organ printing, similar to 3D printing is now possible. Stem Cells will give us a great ability to heal people not only in this way, but many others as well.
    MR

    ReplyDelete

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