Latest Stem Cell 'News
How Cord Blood is Saving Lives…
Eight year old Joseph Davis Jr. is now a healthy boy but at birth he was diagnosed with sickle cell anemia, a chronic blood disorder that deprives cells of proper oxygen, causes periodic painful episodes and reduces life expectancy. Only a bone marrow transplant could help him. Every day, thousands of people with a blood disease search the registry for life saving bone marrow and cord blood donors because they can't find a match within their families. Cord blood comes from a newborn's umbilical cord or placenta and contains a high concentration of the hematopoietic stem cells that can help generate new, healthy cells in transplant recipients. The search dragged on for over a year to find ...
Posted by admin on May 08 2008
Top 10 Scientific Discoveries
#10. Real-Life Kryptonite In April, geologists dug up a white, powdery mineral in which they did not know what to make of it. Chris Stanley, a mineralogist at London's Natural History Museum, discovered that it had the same chemistry; sodium lithium boron silicate hydroxide, as the fictional kryptonite, the green glowing rock that is Superman's only weakness. Its chemical make-up was revealed in the 2006 film Superman Returns. The real-life substance will be called jadarite, after the area of Serbia in which it was found. It can't be called kryptonite, because krypton, the gas, is already a real element. #9. The World's Oldest Animal...
Posted by admin on May 02 2008
Stem Cells Found For The First Time In The Pituitary
A team of researchers led by scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory have for the first time identified stem cells that allow the pituitary glands of mice to grow even after birth. They found that, in contrast to most adult stem cells, these cells are distinct from those that fuel the initial growth of this important organ. The results suggest a novel way that the hormone-secreting gland may adapt, even in adolescents and adults, to traumatic stress or to normal life changes like pregnancy. Seeking Adult Stem Cells Maturity, in some respects, brings diminished possibilities. As a fertilized egg cell repeatedly divides to grow into a mature animal, most of the resulting cells become ever more specialized. But a small number of ...
Posted by admin on Apr 30 2008
Stem cell hope for heart patients
A PIONEERING stem cell treatment being developed in Yorkshire could see a massive increase in the number of heart patients living longer. Scientists from Sheffield University are developing the world's first regenerative device to be inserted into diseased arteries. And they believe it could save thousands of lives.Coronary artery disease causes at least 6.9 million deaths worldwide each year and is the leading cause of premature death in the UK. Stent implantation – where a mini spring-like coil is fitted into furred up arteries in order to widen them and allow more blood through – is now the most common intervention for the disease. But the stent has to be covered with chemicals so the body does not attack it and ...
Posted by admin on Apr 29 2008
Can child’s umbilical-cord blood be used to treat his own cerebral palsy?
DALLAS HEXTELL looked like any other healthy toddler when he appeared on the "Today" show on March 11 -- walking, clapping, laughing, waving to his mom. But just nine months earlier, cerebral palsy had kept Dallas, now 2, from crawling, sitting up or reaching other milestones of child development. Dallas' parents attribute his remarkable improvement to an experimental treatment using an infusion of his own umbilical-cord blood, saved at the wish of his parents in a private bank at his birth. But cerebral palsy and stem cell experts warn that no one knows yet just how well the treatment has worked or whether it will work for others with his condition.
Posted by admin on Apr 29 2008
