Stem Cells to repair the Heart
By Antonio Marques • Sep 8th, 2007 • Category: Features, Medicine, News, Stem CellsIf you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
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| photo by Janet 59 |
Stem cells can be defined, in a simple way, as cells that have the capacity to renew themselves as well as differentiate into any other cell type in the organism (although every cell shares the same genetic material, as they differentiate, certain genes are turned on or off, giving cells the specific characteristics needed for a certain tissue).
Much debate has been going around on the ethical questions of using embryonic stem cells (stem cells harvested from embryos).
This issue has been addressed by a group of researchers from the University of Bristol (UK) and the Bristol Heart Institute. They propose to use stem cells harvested from the bone marrow of patients who have suffered major heart attacks and inject them directly into the heart. One advantage of using stem cells harvested from the patient, besides addressing the ethical questions, is the reduction in the risks of rejection by the patient’s immune system.
One of the problems that arises after a heart attack is the formation of scars that can prevent a proper heart contraction. The aim of this study is to test whether the stem cells are capable of repairing the muscle cells in the heart damaged during the heart attack, by preventing late scar formation.
This trial is a novel approach for treating heart attack related complications and can bring hope for future heart attack patients.
Source: Biotech international
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Is there any indication at this stage of the research how soon after a heart attack this would need to be done?
Hi Paul,
I could not find much data on time limits for the procedure, either maximum or minimum. Remember that this is very preliminary research and not much is known yet (just 2 years ago it was discussed if it was even possible). Nonetheless, for another study (not the one mentioned on my article), to be considered for the experimental group, the heart attack needed to have occurred more than 60 days before treatment.
I’m sorry that I could not be more helpful. Anyway, I’ll keep my eyes open for the subject and if I find something published in the coming literature I’ll let you know.
Thanks for your contact.
It would be great if the research can be done successfully. Will be a great boon to mankind