****Stem Cells Prompt Organ Regeneration

HD Lighthouse Contributing Editor's Comment: We can get excited. This is a wonderful unexpected discovery of research. Stem cells were expected to populate and function to replace lost cells. Something much better happened. Some unknown molecule (x) in the stem cells triggered the organ to repair it's self.

Finding x and transporting it across the blood brain barrier is likely to treat HD. Meanwhile take care of yourself. --Jerry
Posted to the HDL: 24 Jun 2003

Cell Regeneration
"What we were able to do was demonstrate that adult bone marrow stem cells were capable of homing to a site of injury, specifically the pancreas, and trigger the cells to regenerate themselves within seven to 14 days," --Dr. Mick Bhatia, director of stem cell research at the Robarts Research Institute In London, Ont.

ST. JOHN'S, NFLD. - Canadian researchers have discovered stem cells can help regenerate damaged cells in the pancreas of mice. The results represent a shift in how scientists think about stem cells, and may offer hope for new diabetic treatments.

Stem cells are like the body's blank slates. The cells appear early in embryonic development and can become specialized as muscles, tissues and organs. Stem cells are produced throughout an animal's life in the bone marrow.

Under the right conditions, stem cells can become blood and immune cells. That's why bone marrow transplants are sometimes offered to cancer patients.

New research suggests stem cells may play a much greater therapeutic role than previously believed.

Organ effects

In the experiment, Bhatia damaged the pancreas of mice, effectively causing them to become diabetic and unable to produce insulin.

When he injected bone marrow from adult mice back into the injured mice, their blood glucose levels reduced rapidly and their insulin levels rose. As expected, all of the animals that did not receive transplants continued to show high glucose levels.

A few stem cells packed a metabolic punch

Other researchers have injected stem cells into mice, focusing on the rate at which stem cells become other types of tissues.

Bhatia's research differed by looking at whether the mouse in fact recovered. They were surprised to find a few stem cells were enough to make a big metabolic difference, and that led them to discover the effects on a whole organ.

No human trials are planned yet. Since the results were published Sunday in the journal Nature Biotechnology, Bhatia said his phone has been ringing off the hook with calls from physicians across North America.

"There certainly is no immediate hurdle to prevent trials like that to go on," he said. "The first thing we need to know is whether the human pancreas and human cells will recapitulate what we see in the mouse."

Source: CBC News 24 Jun 2003.

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