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New research released this week has found that adult stem cells harvested from the pancreas are actually better than embryoniccells because they have somewhat of a "memory" that includes theability to produce insulin and have kidney like functions. Inaddition, alternate studies have shown that kidney cells can morphfrom one kind of cell to another, possibly helping solve dialysisand transplant issues. This may mean that for people who have type 1 diabetes , which results from an autoimmune attack that destroys theirpancreatic beta cells, might someday be able to use these cells toreconstruct functioning beta cells. A stem cell-based therapy wouldbe a welcome alternative to organ transplants, which can lead toorgan rejection or a lifetime of taking immune-suppressing drugs. New beta cells would come from a patient's own body so there wouldbe less likelihood of outright rejection. However, because type 1diabetes is an autoimmune disease, stem cell research will have togo hand-in-hand with treatments that inhibit the autoimmune attackon beta cells. Stem cells, whether derived from embryos or adults, are considered"pluripotent," which means they have the ability to differentiateinto many different cell types. Many scientists sees them aspotential building blocks for organ reconstruction overall. In a separate study, standard kidney cells have been found to beable to morph into cells that are needed for a specific function.Dr. Ivonne Schulman, an assistant professor of clinical medicineand nephrologist at the University of Miami's InterdisciplinaryStem Cell Institute in Florida, said that this is the first timethat researchers have shown that kidney cells could be reprogrammedand made to behave like embryonic stem cells, meaning they have thepotential to differentiate into other types of kidney cells. Schulman continues: "Two papers back-to-back show that two different kidney cell typesare able to be reprogrammed. This is very significant. It couldtheoretically help all types of kidney disease. It just depends onthe ability of these cells to differentiate back into the celltypes needed for that disease." Dr. Samuel Saltzberg, a transplant nephrologist at Rush UniversityMedical Center in Chicago stated: "This is a critical and important first step. We have quite a wayto go to get to a point where we can impact kidney disease,especially in diseases when the whole organ needs to be repaired." The current treatment for end-stage kidney disease includesdialysis and/or kidney transplantation. Dialysis, which outsourceskidney function, is uncomfortable, time-consuming and costly. Dr. Jeffrey I. Silberzweig, co-medical director of the RogosinInstitute Manhattan Dialysis Center in New York City concludes: "The idea that you can have the ability to do stem cell transplantsduring the early stage of kidney disease and regenerate the damagedpart of the kidney would be a tremendous benefit for patients andthe country as a whole. The supply of kidneys available fortransplantation is way behind the number of people who need them.If it reaches a point where this technology becomes practical,patients would fall over each other getting in line to do it." Written by Sy Kraft Copyright: Medical News Today Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today Additional References Citations. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as Machine Washing Powder , Liquid Glass Cleaner Manufacturer, and more. For more , please visit Professional Anti Dandruff Shampoo today!
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