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Introduction Stem cells can be best understood as blank cells. Like Jokers in a game of Rummy, stem cells act as blank cells and take the characteristics and properties of any other type of cells that are required by the patient. Stem cells have the unique skill of transforming into any type of tissue, both free and authority, given that they require special conditions under which they can properly grow. When the organs or cells inside a person are severely damaged, and the organ is beyond recovery, the most viable solution seems organ transplant. Unfortunately, today the number of people with damaged organs exceeded the number of donors. Stem Cells can treat a number of diseases and conditions including Parkinson's disease, spinal injuries, burns, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and heart disease. Stem Cells might get targeted by the body’s immune system. To avoid this, a radiation might be required to remove the patient’s previous cells.
Properties Stem cells majorly possess two properties.
Self-Renewal The first is Self-renewal i.e. the ability to go through numerous cycles of cell division while maintaining the undifferentiated state. Due to self-renewal, a starting population of stem cells that proliferates for many months in the laboratory can yield millions of cells.
Differentiation Whereas, the second is Potency i.e. the capacity to differentiate into specialized cell types. When unspecialized stem cells give rise to specialized cells, the process is called differentiation. While differentiating, the cell usually goes through several stages, becoming more specialized at each step. Scientists are just beginning to understand the signals inside and outside cells that trigger each stem of the differentiation process. The internal signals are controlled by a cell's genes, which are interspersed across long strands of DNA, and carry coded instructions for all cellular structures and functions. If the resulting cells from mitosis continue to be unspecialized, like the parent stem cells, the cells are said to be capable of long-term self-renewal. The specific factors and conditions that allow stem cells to remain unspecialized are of great interest to scientists. It has taken scientists many years of trial and error to learn to derive and maintain stem cells in the laboratory without them spontaneously differentiating into specific cell types.
Conclusion: To conclude, stem cells still require much research before biologists can perfectly use them. When this research is complete and the scientists know how to use stem cells, human beings would enter a completely new dimension of medical sciences with cure to many known and unknown diseases.
Source: http://www.researchomatic.com/stem-cells-130653.html 1