The Super Cells Called Stem Cells! Ever since their discovery, stem cells have been the subject of various researches due to their fascinating characteristics. They have the extraordinary and unique potential to develop as a variety of cells in the body right from early life till growth years. Also, these cells have an additional feature; they act as the body’s internal repair mechanism by dividing without limit to replenish the other body cells that may be subjected to wear, tear or death. Stem cells do not lose their potential as long as the organism is alive and continue to provide cell support to the body both in basic and advanced organs.
As per the requirement of the organism, upon the division, each new cell may potentially stay a stem cell or develop into any other cell in the body. The new cell will have a specialized purpose, like an RBC or a brain cell. This function of these cells has led to their consistent subjection to research and experiment due to their special division abilities. The scientific experiments and research have discovered various uses and benefits of such cells in reparative medicine. Two significant features distinguish Stem cells vis a vis other body cells. Firstly, these cells are not specialized and are thus capable of cell division, occasionally after long inactive phases. Secondly, they could be experimentally induced to develop into tissue or organ-specific cells with distinct purposes. In certain body organs like the intestine and bone marrow, they frequently multiply to repair or substitute damaged tissues. Scientists have, until recently, worked with the embryonic stem cells that were discovered in 1981 from early mouse embryos by scientists. In 1998, the procedure to obtain such cells from human embryos was discovered by scientists during a thorough study of mouse stem cells. The cultivation of these cells in the laboratory was also discovered by scientists simultaneously. The embryos thus produced through in vitro fertilization process were mainly for reproductive procedures. The second type is non-embryonic "adult" or "somatic" stem cells that were discovered in 2006, by recognizing environments that could allow some specialized cells to be genetically
"reprogrammed" to take the state of a stem cell. IPSCs or induced pluripotent stem cells were thus obtained. Stem cells are vital for living organisms. The inner cells of the blastocyst (embryo that is 2- to 4day-old) from the entire organism through division. The organs like the heart, lungs, skin, eggs, sperm and other specialized cell types of other tissues are also similarly formed. The bone marrow, muscle, brain, and some other adult tissues have adult stem cells generating substitutes for cells lost in disease and injury. Stem cells offer new possibilities through their unique regenerative abilities, to treat diseases like diabetes, and heart ailments. Yet, more research needs to be carried out to comprehend how to use them for therapies through cells for disease treatment. Reparative Medicine is based on these therapies. Scientists are using these cells to screen new drugs and develop prototypical systems to identify birth defects causes. Mahendra Trivedi through his blogs has also recognized that stem cell research is on the track to identify the subset of cancer stem cells from the group of cancer cells and so that experiments and treatment can be targeted on these subsets. But these cells have the potential to withstand the existing traditional treatment modalities. Cancer cells generally are resistant to chemotherapy and radiation therapy as they are able to repair the DNA damages caused by both. As the cancer cells survive, it can initiate recurrence of the disease. So cancer cell research is now being focused on these undifferentiated stem cells, which pose more effects on human existence.