- Scientists find switch that harnesses the power of cord blood.
- The switch increases the amount of stem cells.
- This can be used in the treatment of blood cancer patients
are immature cells that have the potential to develop into different types of cells. Adults have stem cells in their bone marrow that mature into various blood cell types depending upon the requirement.
Patients suffering from leukemia
, some lymphomas
or even multiple myelomas require chemotherapy that is aimed at killing the cancer cells. However, in the process, stem cells from the bone marrow are also completely destroyed. This results in the body's inability to make blood that is essential for life. Such patients require stem cell transplants to aid their body in making its own blood.
‘A large amount of stem cells can soon be used for effective treatment of blood cancer.’
Use of Stem
Cell Transplant in Blood Cancer Patients
- Stem cell transplant will aid in
providing normal blood cells for the cancer patients and aid in sustaining
- The newly transplanted stem cells
will host better immune cells against the cancer cells, this is called
There are three
different ways from which stem cells are transplanted:
transplant to blood cancer patients is carried out after immune matching with
an adult, this involves a long waiting period, with only one-third of patients
receiving this treatment.
Dr. John Dick,
principal investigator of the study on stem cells says "About 40,000 people
receive stem cell transplants each year, but that represents only about
one-third of the patients who require this therapy. That's why there is a big
push in research to explore cord blood as a source because it is readily
available and increases the opportunity to find tissue matches. The key is to
expand stem cells from cord blood to make many more samples available to meet
this need. And we're making progress."
The drawback in
using stem cells from cord blood is that very few stem cells are available.
However, the current study by Dr. Dick and colleagues hopes to harness the
power of the cord blood in providing stem cells.
Discovery Of Stem Cells
Dr. John Dick is
a senior scientist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. Two scientists, late
Dr. Ernest McCulloch and Dr. James Till discovered the first stem cell in 1961.
Their discovery has led to a separate branch of biology that deals with stem
cell research, in lieu of the huge potential in medical research.
Purest Stem Cell by Dr John Dick
In 2011 Dr. Dick
and colleagues isolated stem cells in the purest form that could
Switch for Stem Cells
- Give rise to entire range of blood
- Opened doorways to tapping into
the potential of stem cells in treating diseases.
When stem cells
are isolated and they grow and divide, they have the unique ability to form any
one of the 10 different types of blood cells. However, they lose the capacity
to self renew. They develop into blood cells and stop being stem cells.
When Dr. Dick
and colleagues studied the mechanism of transformation they found that
microRNA- mi125a formed a genetic switch that was turned off in progenitor
cells. This resulted in stem cells losing their self- renewal property.
switch provides a key link to discovering the huge potential of stem cells in
the treatment of diseases.
Dr. Dick says
"Our work shows that if we artificially throw the switch on in those downstream
cells, we can endow them with stemness and they basically become stem cells and
can be maintained over the long term".
of the Study
- The study highlights the presence of a genetic switch that is turned off in the progenitors of stem cells.
- Provides hope for treatment of serious illnesses like blood cancer. Every 4 minutes one person is diagnosed with blood cancer every year.
- Why are Stem Cell Transplants Used as Cancer Treatment? - (http://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatmentsandsideeffects/treatmenttypes/bonemarrowandperipheralblood-stemcelltransplant/stem-cell-transplant-why-stem-cell-trans-used)
- Leukemia Statistics - (http://www.allbloodcancers.org/statistics)