Stem Cell Definitions Archives
What Is Amyloidosis?
Amyloidosis is a group of diseases in which one or more organ systems in the body accumulate deposits of abnormal proteins.
The name "amyloidosis" was first used more than 100 years ago but cases were described over 300 years ago. However, only within the past 20 years have physicians understood the specific make-up and structure of amyloid protein.
Although amyloidosis is not cancer, it is very serious. It may be disabling or life threatening. However, growing awareness of the condition seems to be leading to substantial new research and treatment alternatives.
...Continue reading "What Is Amyloidosis?"
Posted on July 6, 2007 02:17 PM | Comments (0)
What Is the Hedgehog Signaling Pathway?
The Hedgehog Signaling Pathway is a mechanism within the body to control the normal development and growth of stem cells and certain tissues systems.
The Hedgehog gene got its name after studies of fruit flies lacking it revealed that cell types were jumbled, instead of organized in the neat lines of normal flies. The jumbled cells, the scientists decided, resembled the round, porcupine-like animal.
It is also known, humorously, as Sonic The Hedgehog Signaling Pathway ...
...Continue reading "What Is the Hedgehog Signaling Pathway?"
Posted on August 10, 2005 05:47 PM | Comments (0)
What Is The Hayflick Limit?
When discussing stem cell research, especially when looking at potential relationships to cancer, one often comes to articles pertaining to the "Hayflick Limit". The Hayflick Limit is also quite important when one is discussion regenerative medicine. So any discussion of cellular death, regeneration, cancer, or stem cells as a whole, one cannot overlook the importance of this theory.
Back in the 1960's, Dr. Leonard Hayflick found in his research at the Wistar Institute in Philadelphia that lung tissue appeared to die out after the cells had divided a certain number of times .. essentially 50 times.
To take this further, he took cell cultures that had been frozen after dividing 25 times. Once the cells were thawed, they would continue until the 50 division limit was reached, then still die. This is now known as the "Hayflick Limit".
Continue reading "What Is The Hayflick Limit?"
Posted on July 27, 2005 03:43 PM | Comments (0)
What is Telomerase?
As simply as possible ... Telomerase is an enzyme that is found in the telomeres of certain chromosomes that are active in cell division. It is thought that telomerase plays a important role in the proliferation of cancer cells.
Telomerase seems to provide cells with replicative immortality in tumors, which allows the cancer to grow and metastasize over long periods of time. Because telomerase is inactive or only transiently expressed in normal human tissues, and is critical to the growth and progression of most cancer types, it is thought of as a universal and specific cancer related enzyme.
...Continue reading "What is Telomerase?"
Posted on July 26, 2005 12:13 AM | Comments (0)
Stem Cell FAQ Over at Wired
Wired, as always has a really good article which provides us with a pretty simple breakdown on some of the questions most stem cell novices have. Now many of us here may not find this as useful, but for those of you who are here for the first time and are wondering .. here are some of the questions Wired is adding. We may have to add to this as well:
- What are embryonic stem cells?
- Why do scientists want to use stem cells?
Continue reading "Stem Cell FAQ Over at Wired"
Posted on June 28, 2005 01:07 PM | Comments (0)
What is Tovaxin and How It Targets Multiple Sclerosis
We see quite a few queries here regarding PharmaFrontier's Tovaxin and Multiple Sclerosis, so thought it best to get some information put together here that may be informative and help those seeking find some answers.
Now keep in mind, we are not doctors. We are not making treatment recommendations or anything of that nature. What we look at here more often than not, is what is out on the forefront of stem cell research and related therapies being researched.
With that in mind, lets look at what Tovaxin is being claimed to do ...
...Continue reading "What is Tovaxin and How It Targets Multiple Sclerosis"
Posted on May 4, 2005 12:40 PM | Comments (0)
What Is Cord Blood? or What Is Umbilical Cord Blood?
Based on queries we are getting, we need make sure it is clear what cord blood actually is.
Cord Blood is short for Umbilical Cord Blood.
Right after the birth of a baby, the umbilical cord cut and usually discarded along with the placenta. Cord Blood is in short the blood and tissue collected from the umbilical cord after it is severed from the baby.
It is now known that this blood is a highly rich source of stem cells. The specific cells that are the most sought after are known as hematopoietic stem cells, which are also found in bone marrow, and are the foundation of the many types of blood cells. These cells further be used to treat various genetic disorders that affect the blood and the immune system.
To date, more than 45 disorders can be treated with stem cells from umbilical cord blood. Also, many other treatments are being researched that specifically use cord blood.
There are many commercial companies ramping up to provide services to parents to store their newborn baby’s cord blood, as well as several organizations in place to take donations of Cord Blood.
Finally, there are several congressional level bills pending that involved Cord Blood, one such bill can be found here: Cord Blood Stem Cell Act of 2003. There are many other State level actions as well.
Will try to gather them and post them here as well.
Posted on March 28, 2005 06:53 PM | Comments (0)
What is Xenotransplantation?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has the best definition overall of Xenotransplantation:
"Xenotransplantation is any procedure that involves the transplantation, implantation, or infusion into a human recipient of either (a) live cells, tissues, or organs from a nonhuman animal source, or (b) human body fluids, cells, tissues or organs that have had ex vivo contact with live nonhuman animal cells, tissues or organs.
"The development of xenotransplantation is, in part, driven by the fact that the demand for human organs for clinical transplantation far exceeds the supply. Currently ten patients die each day in the United States while on the waiting list to receive life-saving vital organ transplants. .......
...Continue reading "What is Xenotransplantation?"
Posted on March 10, 2005 11:35 AM | Comments (0)
What Are Hematopoietic Stem Cells?
The name is derived from Hematopoiesis, which is simply the formation of blood or blood cells in the body.
Hematopoietic Stem Cells are simply stem cells involved in the body's process of creating blood related cells. They are ultimately responsible for the constant renewal of blood which to give some scope is the production of billions of new blood cells each day.....
...Continue reading "What Are Hematopoietic Stem Cells?"
Posted on February 22, 2005 01:02 PM | Comments (0)
What Is Altered Nuclear Transfer?
With the politics and hype around stem cell research, the latest buzz phrase being passed around is "altered nuclear transfer".
Alterned nuclear transfer is being put forward by bioethicists as a possible ethical work-around to embryonic stem cell research and the creation of embryos involved in Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT)....
Continue reading "What Is Altered Nuclear Transfer?"
Posted on February 22, 2005 11:20 AM | Comments (0)
What Are Mesenchymal Stem Cells?
First, the mesenchyme where Mesenchymal Stem Cellsare found, is the part of the embryonic mesoderm and consists of loosely packed, unspecialized cells set in a gelatinous ground substance.
Mesenchymal Stem Cells are unspecialized cells (stem cells) from which connective tissue, bone, cartilage, and the circulatory and lymphatic systems develop.
Continue reading "What Are Mesenchymal Stem Cells?"
Posted on February 21, 2005 04:59 PM | Comments (0)
What Is Stem Cell Research?
For those of you regularly reading our site, this question has already been answered.
However, sometimes people see an article and are looking for a general discription of stem cell research.
So how we go:
What Is Stem Cell Research?
In a nutshell, as we know, stem cells are cells within an organism that have start out their life as undifferentiaed cells.
For instance, eye cells and heart cells are effectively the same genetically within one organism. Test the DNA of one and you see essentially the same DNA as the other.
However, these 2 different cell types have differentiated to fill two very different roles. One to see with, and another to pump blood with....
...Continue reading "What Is Stem Cell Research?"
Posted on February 21, 2005 04:22 PM | Comments (0)
What Are Umbilical Cord Blood Stem Cells?
Simply, umbilical cord blood is the blood and tissues left over during the removal of the umbilical cord of new born babies.
Blood retrieved from the umbilical cord after birth is a rich source of stem cells.
Stem cells being the unspecialized blood cells that produce all other a number of other types of cells, include blood-clotting platelets and red and white blood cells.
Similar to bone marrow that is currently donated, umbilical cord blood is being researched for treament of various disorders and diseases that affect the blood and immune system, leukemia and certain cancers, and some inherited disorders of body chemistry. Thusfar, more than 45 disorders have been found that can be treated with stem cells from umbilical cord blood.
...Continue reading "What Are Umbilical Cord Blood Stem Cells?"
Posted on February 21, 2005 03:37 PM | Comments (0)
What Are Adult Stem Cells?
Adult Stem Cells are again another category of Stem Cells. We have coveredso far:
What Stem Are Cells?
and
What Are Embryonic Stem Cells?
Now lets get a simple but solid answer to this one.
Adult Stem Cells are stem cells that are found among already differentiated cells in a tissue or organ. Like other stem cells, these cells can renew themselves, and can differentiate to yield the major specialized cell types of the tissue or organ.
The primary role of adult stem cells is to maintain and repair the specific tissue in which they are found.
Additional names for Adult Stem Cells are Somatic Stem Cells.
...Continue reading "What Are Adult Stem Cells?"
Posted on February 17, 2005 03:45 PM | Comments (0)
What Are Embryonic Stem Cells?
Ok, we have covered in a nutshell, What Stem Cells Are. Now lets deal with the controversial one.
What Are Embryonic Stem Cells?
Embryonic stem cells are cells that are derived from embryos. To be more precise, embryonic stem cells are derived from embryos that developed from eggs that have been fertilized in fertilization clinics which were then donated for research purposes (with consent of the donors).
...Continue reading "What Are Embryonic Stem Cells?"
Posted on February 17, 2005 03:05 PM | Comments (0)
What Are Stem Cells?
First, lets settle one thing.
Stem Cells are NOT necessarily Embryonic Stem Cells.
Often these two terms are used interchangably, which is generally a ploy for political and ethical debates.
Stem Cells are a a general class of cells whereas Embryonic Stem Cells are a category of stem cells.
Now that thats covered:
What Are Stem Cells?
Stem cells are cells within an organism that have ability to develop into many different cell types within the body in a process known as differentiation.
Stem Cells serve as part of the repair system for the body. These cells can theoretically divide without limit to replace other cells for as long as the person or animal is still alive.
When a stem cell divides, each resulting cell has the potential to either remain a stem cell or become another more specialized type of cell, such as a heart muscle cell, a bone cell, or even a brain cell....
Continue reading "What Are Stem Cells?"
Posted on February 17, 2005 02:35 PM | Comments (0)
What Is Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT)?
Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT) is another name for therapeutic cloning (which is NOT the same as Reproductive Cloning .. i.e. Dolly the Sheep), and in some cases the root of the overall stem cell debate within the US States.
To fully understand this process involded in SCNT, a short course on embryology and cellular physiology must be undertaken. We will try to keep it as short and simple as we can.
When talking about cellular physiology, remember that every cell contains a cell membrane which consists mainly of lipids or fats. This membrane separates the interior of the cell from the exterior.
Within the cell is another part, called the nucleus, which is also seperated by a membrane. Located within the nucleus the DNA. All the information that defines a cell is encoded within the DNA....
...Continue reading "What Is Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT)?"
Posted on February 15, 2005 12:28 AM | Comments (0)