Since the memorable summer day of 1909, when the Russian histologist Alexander Maksimov introduced the term “stem cells”, disputes have not abated about them. Scientists reveal their secrets every year, which gives rise to new puzzles.
So, stem cells. What is it - a panacea for all ailments or the greatest error of the best minds of medical science? Experiments on animals confirm that with the help of these miracle cells it is possible to treat malignant tumors, inflammation in the joints, diseases of the liver, heart, stomach. The list of cities in Russia where such a progressive method is used has been added to Orenburg. Stem cells here began to be used to treat joints. But there are scientists who speak very reservedly about the use of stem cells at the current level of knowledge about their effect on the body and offer to treat them only those who have no other chance to save their lives.
Stem cells: what is it
Already, children know that a living organism, whether it be a person, an animal or a plant, is obtained after the fusion of male and female germ cells. As a result, a zygote is formed. This is a diploid structure that has a complete chromosome set and gives rise to absolutely any cells. In a simpler language, a zygote is a unique natural creation from which all parts of living bodies are created in an incomprehensible way for science.
It is clear that for this a zygote must form many cellular structures so that it is enough for all organs. In mammals, it begins to divide one day after its formation. The result is 2 small “zygotic daughters” 100% identical to their “zygote mom”. After another day and a half, the “daughters” are again divided in two, forming already 4 twins - “granddaughters”. By the end of the 5th day, the embryo contains about 30 cells, exact copies of the original zygote, only several times smaller in size. They are called blastomeres. At this stage, DNA and proteins in them are actively synthesized, but the genome is not yet involved, and transcription is not performed in the nuclei, that is, they are still immature. We hope that we very clearly explained what stem cells are. Exaggerated, you can call them just a test, and no one knows what nature, hands, legs or heart and liver will fashion from it. Stem cells are present in organisms not only at the initial stage of their development, but also when all organs are already fully formed, that is, until the end of life. They are needed to restore tissue after damage, only in older people the stem cells are about 50 times less than in young people. All of them have two properties - the ability to self-renew without differentiation and the ability to produce highly specialized cells.
Embryonic stem cells what is it
Abbreviated as ESC. They, as mentioned above, are formed from the zygote and make up the cell mass of the embryo at the very first stage of its life. All of them are pluripotent, that is, they can turn into a cell of any organ. An important distinguishing feature of ESCs is that they do not yet know how to produce antigens responsible for tissue compatibility. Each of us has an individual set of such antigens, which leads to the non-recognition of donor stem cells by the immune system of the person to whom they are administered. With ESCs, this problem is minimal, therefore it is proposed to use them in therapeutic procedures, for example, to treat joints with stem cells. However, in experimental immunocompromised mice to whom ESCs were transplanted, the appearance of malignant tumors was observed. So, there is no exact answer yet what happens to the systems of the human body after the introduction of ESC into its organs. The second disadvantage of embryonic stem cells is that the embryo dies after their removal, therefore it is impossible to obtain autogenous material, only donor material.
Fetal stem cells, or FSK
This material is obtained from parts of the fetus after an abortion if the fetus is no more than 12 weeks old. At this time, the initial stem cells or blastomeres have already decided on their future fate and have begun differentiation. That is, they have already passed a certain number of divisions. Their second feature is that it is impossible to make any cells we need from FSK, but only one thing, for example, tissue of the nervous system organs, or cardiovascular, or bone-cartilage. This is their biggest advantage, because doctors can use them more purposefully and reduce the risk of complications. For example, stem cell treatment of arthrosis is based on these principles. In Russia, this method is still undergoing a testing phase, since FSK have some drawbacks. They consist in the fact that hepatitis viruses, AIDS, mycoplasmas and some others can already be present in the fetal cells. Therefore, such material must necessarily be subjected to costly additional examination and training on special equipment. The second problem in their use is the legal issue, which must be agreed upon.
Postnatal stem cells or UCS
The term "postnatal" means "after birth", that is, throughout the life of an individual. It is believed that at this stage there are no high-quality stem cells, but still they are, and even in older people, they only have low potency (potential). But they can be used with great efficiency and safety, since UCS are autogenous, and not donor. Taking this as a basis, they began stem cell treatment in Orenburg and other clinics practicing similar therapy. It lies in the fact that a patient is taken from the bone marrow by his own stem cells from a puncture, they are activated in special devices in the laboratory, grown to the required amount and reintroduced to the owner. In his body, stem cells are sent to a damaged organ, where they begin the recovery process.
The method has two problems:
1. It is never authentically known whether the immune system will reject its native stem cells or accept.
2. No one knows exactly what happens to stem cells extracted from their usual environment (bone marrow), and how they change during growth in the laboratory.
For these reasons, scientists who have conducted experiments on transplantation of UCS patients with arthrosis in a city like Orenburg have not yet given a 100% guarantee. Stem cells, in their opinion, are a fantastic breakthrough in medicine, but they are still not fully understood.
Types of Postnatal Cells
We found that ESCs are all universal, that is, they can become anything. FGCs are more specific, but they can be used to create different organs in whole systems, for example, in the nervous system. And UCSs have the smallest patentability, that is, they are maximally differentiated. Among them, these types of cells are distinguished:
- hematopoietic, or HSC;
-multipotent mesenchymal stromal, or MMSC;
- tissue specific;
- cells from umbilical cord blood.
From HSC, all lymphocytes, red blood cells, platelets and other blood cells are obtained.
The role of tissue-specific progenitor (preceding) stem cells in the replacement in the tissues of organs of ordinary cells, for various reasons, dead. Their distinguishing feature is a strictly fixed number of divisions, due to which they are not always referred to as true stem cells.
Non-surgical joint treatment options
It was established that MMSCs as a result of further divisions become osteoblasts, chondrocytes, adipocytes. By research in this direction, orthopedists and traumatologists glorified the Russian city of Orenburg. They carried out the treatment of arthrosis with MMSC stem cells to patients who were no longer able to walk; there was such damage in their joints. Stem cells were taken from the adipose tissue of these patients, then the material under sterile conditions was placed in a special environment where the desired cell type was grown for two weeks. Before the introduction of the drug to patients, it was thoroughly tested for the presence of various pathogens. At the moment, everyone who has undergone such treatment is feeling satisfactory, and the signs of arthrosis have significantly decreased. But, according to doctors, the final conclusions are still far away, since it is necessary to conduct additional tests and see how things will be with the tested patients in two years. So far, the work carried out by Orenburg can be considered only the first successful Russian experiment. Stem cells, arthrosis, arthritis, hemarthrosis and other diseases (if positive results are confirmed) will be able to "heal" without installing expensive and poorly implanted endoprostheses for people, which will save patients from complex and heavy operations. Another area of use of MMSCs is their differentiation into myocytes for the restoration of muscle tissue.
Cord blood
According to statistics, more than half of the world's population, to one degree or another, was affected by arthrosis joint disease. MMSC stem cells, perhaps, will give thousands of people the happiness of a painless easy movement, many of them will be restored to working capacity. These MMSCs are obtained not only from bone and adipose tissue, but also from cord blood. Her fence is produced after the birth of the baby and bandaging the umbilical cord. As a result of the material, about 80 ml is obtained. A transplant, which includes cord blood and bone marrow together, provides a particularly high therapeutic effect. In addition to arthrosis, according to doctors, this blood may be applicable for more than 70 ailments, including cancer. Researchers have high hopes for the possibility of using umbilical cord blood to effectively help with incurable diseases by other methods in children, such as leukemia, sarcoma, and brain cancer. Now we are investigating how cord blood stem cells behave when they are administered to patients with schizophrenia, cerebral palsy, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. This material is collected and stored in blood banks. They are public and private.
Plant stem cells
All plants, since they are multicellular systems, also have stem cells that are concentrated in callus, in seedlings, in buds, in young shoots. Studies were carried out with ginseng, edelweiss, rose, gardenia and other plants. But the most positive results were shown by stem cells of red or Amur grapes. The Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences found out that they are the ones that help to cure hepatitis, and scientists from the Crimea found that plant, especially grape, stem cells can be used in the treatment of cancer. Of great interest is the substance resveratrol, originally found in French red wine, and then found in grape stem cells. It is a priority assistant in the struggle for youth of the skin and body. This discovery was used by the creators of the anti-aging cream Libriderm. Stem cells obtained from grapes not only contribute to smoothing wrinkles and remove sagging skin, but also moisturize it perfectly, make it soft, delicate, and protected. Women who have tried Libriderm have the following advantages:
- delicate texture;
- easy to apply on the body;
- does not cause allergic reactions;
- moisturizes the skin almost all day;
- relieves irritation.
They did not like the high price in the cream and the lack of noticeable rejuvenation per month.
DIY stem cell medicine
It is believed that stem cells taken from plants are much less dangerous than those taken from humans or animals, since they carry less genetic information and do not have such a powerful, and most importantly, unpredictable effect. However, they, especially when injected, can cause unwanted effects. But external use, according to an employee of Moscow State University. Lomonosov E. Rodimin, is only for good. He even offers a recipe on how to make a cream at home, the stem cells in which will do the job of improving the condition of the skin of the face.
Buds and young grape shoots can serve as raw materials, but it is best to cut cuttings from grape bushes and grow callus in them. To do this, twigs are placed in the water for a day or two, after which they are removed, wrapped in a rag moistened with water (you can in a wet newspaper), then in a plastic bag, and placed in a warm place. Appeared callus needs to be separated, dried and ground. Next, pour a spoon without a slide (tablespoon) in a stack (100 g) of vodka and infuse for 7 days. The buds and sprouts of grapes need to be put in containers and also filled with vodka. Add the resulting infusion to the finished non-fat cream, for example, aloe vera and mix thoroughly. You can take the drug inside, adding a few drops to teas and juices.
Reviews of specialists
Huge stir around the world stem cells. Reviews of doctors about their use are very controversial.
Positive results:
- Harvard scientists have discovered a method for producing induced pluripotent SCs that take into account the individual characteristics of organisms;
- Japanese researchers from SK raised, fertilized the eggs of mice and received a healthy offspring;
- at the Kyoto Institute, tissues of germ cells, kidneys and adrenal glands were grown from SC;
- Maastricht University created usable meat from the UK cows.
Negative results:
- independent studies by scientists from the USA and Spain have established that both ESCs and UCSs, when they are out of their environment for a long time before being introduced into the patient’s body, cause malignant tumors;
- Danish scientists discovered that after 60 divisions in SC, telomerase begins to be produced, which converts these cells into cancer cells;
- German professor Stark is confident that the treatment of male potency with stem cells is quackery, since no experiment has shown such an effect.
Conclusion: stem cells keep hundreds of secrets, and while their treatment is akin to blood transfusion before it was discovered that it has several groups. In the near future, perhaps stem cells will become a magical cure for everything. For this, scientists from all over the world work with them.