...Background. Cell therapy is an emerging therapeutic strategy aimed at replacing or repairing severely damaged tissues with cultured cells. Epidermal regeneration obtained with autologous cultured keratinocytes (cultured autografts) can be life-saving for patients suffering from massive full-thickness burns. However, the widespread use of cultured autografts has been hampered by poor clinical results that have been consistently reported by different burn units, even when cells were applied on properly prepared wound beds. This might arise from the depletion of epidermal stem cells (holoclones) in culture. Depletion of holoclones can occur because of (i) incorrect culture conditions, (ii) environmental damage of the exposed basal layer of cultured grafts, or (iii) use of new substrates or culture technologies not pretested for holoclone preservation. The aim of this study was to show that, if new keratinocyte culture technologies and/or "delivery systems" are proposed, a careful evaluation of epidermal stem cell preservation is essential for the clinical performance of this life-saving technology. Methods. Fibrin was chosen as a potential substrate for keratinocyte cultivation. Stem cells were monitored by clonal analysis using the culture system originally described by Rheinwald and Green as a reference. Massive full-thickness burns were treated with the composite allodermis/cultured autograft technique. Results. We show that: (i) the relative percentage of holoclones, meroclones...
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...Life and Death: Stem Cells and People Stem cell research, a growing study among scientists and research, has reached new heights and controversy. In 1998, Dr. James Thomson’s scientific breakthrough of a technique to isolate and grow human embryonic stem cells “offered great promise for new ways of treating disease” (AAA). Many researchers and scientists hope to study the stem cells to understand the process of our cells and the cell development and to correct the problems of cells that create defects in human beings. However, there are certain opponents against such research. They believe that is unethical and morally wrong because the embryonic cells are destroying human life and there are other alternatives to embryonic stem cells such as adult cells and cord cells. Is stem cell research ethical? Yes, stem cell research is ethical and can be used to cure any type of disease or injury. Before divulging into stem cell research, one must understand the types of stem cells and where they come from. According to The National Institutes of Health (NIH) website, stem cells are unspecialized cells that are able to “develop into many different many cell types in the body during early life and growth”…and are “capable of renewing themselves through cell division”. With this mind, the cells could form into any type, helping to repair and replace such cells. While it seems fascinating that these cells can repair certain parts of the human organs, there are only three sources of stems...
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...B) Stem cells. A relative of a friend of yours had a spinal cord injury after a bad car accident. The medical team has decided that this patient is a good candidate for a clinical trial using stem cell therapy. Your friend has not had a biology course since high school, so you are going to write for him or her a two-page discussion of stem cell information. In your discussion, include a description of the biology of stem cells, and explain how these cells are unique in their ability to treat diseases and injury. The following website from NIH regarding stem cell research will be very helpful: http://stemcells.nih.gov/index.asp. Before we determine how stem cells can treat various diseases including spinal cord injuries, let us first understand the root of a spinal cord injury. The spinal cord is an extension of the central nervous system that establishes a structural connection between the brain and the other structures of the body (e.g., arms and legs, bowel, bladder) through nerve fibers. A clear fluid called Cerebral Spinal Fluid (CSF) that acts as a cushion to protect the delicate nerve tissues against damage from banging against the inside of the vertebrae surrounds the spinal cord. The vertebrae is made up of thirty-three bones, each with a circular opening similar to the hole in a donut. (“Spinal Cord Injury: Hope Through Research" NINDS. Publication date August 2003) The central nervous system is organized in a way that allows certain parts of the spinal cord...
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...Because of progression of science, there have been many discoveries that deal with life impairing diseases. For example, ability to walk has been given back to an individual who has suffered a spinal cord injury. Stem cell research has opened the doors to science and how it can cure people with like diseases. Some believe that stem cell research is the wave of the future and with it we will be able to eventually cure any disease known to man. Others believe that this type of research is wrong because of the way embryonic stem cells are recovered is incorrect. Stem cell research should be completely funded by the government and mandated; due to the fact it has and could possible be the cure or improve the quality of life of those physical impaired, it establish a greater comprehension on the cause of certain diseases, and last but not least it is ethically correct. With the help of science, people have been cured for spinal cord injuries. Spinal cord injuries remove the possibility of those who once walked from walking. The advancement of stem cell research has shown that by injecting stem cells back into the damaged spinal cord and essentially grows. Stem cells are like clean cells that haven’t found a job yet. By inserting these clean cells into the spinal cord they would start working as a building block where the damage occurred. With the regrowth of the cord, an individual sentenced to life in a wheel chair can walk again. Current research being done is investigating if...
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...Stem-ulating Research Michael Eldridge Abstract Stem cell research has the potential to be the next “big thing.” Stem cells have been around for a very long time, however the research is only a little over ten years old. Stem cells are tiny immature cells that can become any kind of cell in a person’s body. Like everything else in society today stem cell research comes with some controversy. Some controversy comes from the fact that aborted fetuses are used to get stem cells. As always there are at least two sides to every issue. Imagine a world where almost every dangerous disease could be cured by a single medicine. This imagination can become reality with a small little stem cell. Stem cells potentially have the ability to cure cancer, birth defects, brain damage, learning disabilities, paralysis; the list goes on and on. A stem cell is a cell that can replicate itself and takes on the function of the cells around it. To understand stem cell research a background of its history is needed, along with a more in-depth explanation of what a stem cell is, and finally ethical issues associated with stem cell research. Although stem cells have been around for a long time, the research of stem cells is relatively new. In 1996 the Dickey-Wicker amendment was created and it prohibits the creation of embryos through government funding. Experiments on stem cells began in 1998 at the University of Wisconsin. “Dr. James Thomson at the University of Wisconsin developed a technique...
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...Shelley Gouin November 10th, 2015 Persuasive Speech/ Stem cell research I. Introduction A.Attention: Did you ever wonder if our generation could ever cure cancer or even give a paraplegic a chance to walk again? Stem cells could be the real answer to these questions. Stem cells are reproductive cells that adopt the qualities of the tissue that it is surrounded by, therefore becoming a part of the tissue itself. B. Thesis statement: Stem cell research has generated new information about basic cell system that is critical to understanding the causes of disease, such as cancer. C. Preview: The state of California has become a world leader in stem cell research. According to the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, stem cell research has the potential to also treat diseases that are currently burdened with high health care costs. These specific diseases include heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, or diabetes. II. Body A. If stem cell therapy becomes a cure for these diseases it would cripple the healthcare system. Even if stem cell therapy doesn’t entirely cure a disease, reducing its impact would be a massive economic benefit. 1. Most therapies would allow individuals to go back to work. a. This would also allow the caregivers for these individuals to go back to work again. 2. Stem cell research is expected to boom in the biotech industry, bringing new companies to the state of California and creating high paying jobs. a. Individuals states have passed...
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...|Creative technology ltd | |[pic] | |Creative Zii Egg Plaszma | | | | | Table of Contents 1. Executive summary 4 2. Introduction 5 3. External Environment 6 3.1 Market Demographic Environment 6 3.2 Market Economics Environment 7 3.3 Market Technological Environment 8 4. Internal Environment 8 4.1 Internal Resources 8 4.2 Potential Market 9 4.3 Competitors 9 5. Internal Analysis 11 5.1 SWOT Analysis 11 5.1.1 Strength 12 5.1.2 Weaknesses 12 5.1.3 Opportunities 12 5.1.4 Threats 12 6. Mission Statement and Objectives 13 6.1 Mission Statement 13 6.2 Objectives 13 6.2.1 Quantitative Objectives 13 6.2.2 Qualitative Objectives 13 7. Selection and Measuring of Target Market 13 7.1 Outline of Marketing Research 13 7.2 Assessment of Potential Market 14 7.3 Market Segmentation (in relation...
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...| | |Finding Cures and Protecting Life | | | Finding Cures and Protecting life Stem Cell Research offers hope to millions of American with diseases like Diabetes, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. The hope has been that one day they may unlock the secret of human development and yield powerful therapies to treat a wide variety of genetic disorders and diseases, including cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and more. Catholic Church has actively encouraged stem cell research; Contrary to what some may believe, the church is not opposed to all forms of stem cell research. Catholic Church believes that the use of adult stem cells as a “better way” to achieve the therapeutic promise of stem cells. Only research using embryotic stem cells have been condemned by the Church. The stem cell debate is filled with controversy question and confusion about science, cures and how we should treat human life at every stage. So what is a stem cell, it is an undifferentiated cell of a multicellular organism that is capable of giving rise to indefinitely more cells of the same type, and from which certain other kinds of cells arise by differentiation. Or some people...
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...Hope in the form of Stem Cells Dear John, After our brief discussion regarding the Doctors suggestion for stem cell therapy, I quickly began to gather information surrounding the topic to aid in your decision making. Stem cells have been researched for over thirty years. Primarily two types of stem cells have been used for research, from both humans and animals, entitled embryonic and non-embryonic cells (Stem cell basics, 2002). The research for embryonic cells came in the early eighties after mice embryos had been used for extensive research. It was found that human embryonic embryos can be utilized as stem cells and reprogrammed to adapt in order to become the desired type of cell needed. Do you remember when my wife and I endured our round of in-vitro fertilization to conceive our first child? The fertility specialist was able to gather 13 embryos during egg retrieval. All 13 embryos were successfully fertilized. After forty-eight hours it was determined that only 8 had divided in a healthy manner and were able to continue the process of maturation (splitting). Four were then frozen using cryonization and the other four were left to continue onwards to blastyocysts. Two of the four did not make it past 36 hours however two of them developed into grade “A” cells allowing for implantation. We were fortunate that one of the two cells implanted and resulted in a healthy pregnancy. I share this story with you to illustrate how delicate the process of obtaining healthy...
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...Hope in the form of Stem Cells Dear John, After our brief discussion regarding the Doctors suggestion for stem cell therapy, I quickly began to gather information surrounding the topic to aid in your decision making. Stem cells have been researched for over thirty years. Primarily two types of stem cells have been used for research, from both humans and animals, entitled embryonic and non-embryonic cells (Stem cell basics, 2002). The research for embryonic cells came in the early eighties after mice embryos had been used for extensive research. It was found that human embryonic embryos can be utilized as stem cells and reprogrammed to adapt in order to become the desired type of cell needed. Do you remember when my wife and I endured our round of in-vitro fertilization to conceive our first child? The fertility specialist was able to gather 13 embryos during egg retrieval. All 13 embryos were successfully fertilized. After forty-eight hours it was determined that only 8 had divided in a healthy manner and were able to continue the process of maturation (splitting). Four were then frozen using cryonization and the other four were left to continue onwards to blastyocysts. Two of the four did not make it past 36 hours however two of them developed into grade “A” cells allowing for implantation. We were fortunate that one of the two cells implanted and resulted in a healthy pregnancy. I share this story with you to illustrate how delicate the process of obtaining healthy...
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...Stem Cell Research Embryonic stem cell research dates as far back as the early 1900’s when scientists discovered that certain cells could produce more cells in both animals and humans. In 1961, two scientists, Dr. James Till and Dr. Ernest McCulloch, proved the existence of cells that can “self-renew repeatedly for various uses.” (“Stem cell history,” 2011). Stem cells are an important element to medical research. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, “there are four primary sources for embryonic stem cells: existing stem cell lines, aborted or miscarried embryos, unused in vitro fertilized embryos, and cloned embryos.” (2008). In order to extract stem cells found within an embryo, the embryo will be destroyed in the removal process. This is where the ethical and funding debates come in to play. The debate over embryonic stem cell research is politically divided among Democrats and Republicans. As history has shown, Democrats seem to be more supportive of expanding the research as a whole, while Republicans are only supportive of expanding the research as long as it does not involve destroying or harming human embryos. The first time the U.S. government and Department of Health and Human Services placed a ban on researching embryos was after the famous 1973 Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade that allowed private abortions. The government was worried about the aborted fetuses becoming exploited for research purposes, so they temporarily suspended...
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...According to the National Institutes of Health, human embryonic stem cells are derived from an embryo, a fertilized egg. Shortly after an egg is fertilized, it begins to divide until eventually it becomes a ball-like shape called a blastocyst that consists of roughly one thousand cells. The blastocyst is made up of three parts: outer cells that keep everything together, an inner mass of cells that will eventually develop into an organism, and fluid that disperses itself within the blastocyst (4). At this stage, the inner mass of cells are not specialized yet meaning they have the potential to turn into anything in the body. These cells are what are known as human embryonic stem cells. Currently, embryonic stem cells are apart of a clinical trial to treat patients with Stargardt's Macular Dystrophy, a disease inherited at an early age that ultimately results in legal blindness (5). To correct the disease, embryonic stem cells are injected into the eyes of patients in the hopes they will eventually replace the cells that are altering the vision. Mdsupport.org reports that the embryonic stem cells have shown encouraging signs of hope. In addition to embryonic stem cells there are also adult stem cells. Similarly to embryonic stem cells, they are able to transform into more than one type of cell, but adult stem cells are much more limited in what they can become (1). Adult stem cells have been found in numerous regions of the body in different organs and tissues. For example...
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...Stem Cell Research Paper Stem Cell Research Paper Human Biology The human body is capable of many miraculous feats. Every hour, every minute, every second, millions of cells are working to maintain homeostasis within the body. This paper is going to focus on one type of cell in particular, the stem cell. The properties of this little cell are amazing. These unique cells self-regenerate through cell division, and in addition to being unspecialized, have the ability to develop into many different specialized cells of the body. Numerous studies have shown the potential of stem cells to cure cancers, as well as slow or reverse the damages of some neurological disorders, yet stem cell researchers have met with both public and legal resistance during their attempts to show the incredible usefulness of these cells. Therefore, the question is, with stem cell research showing the potential to reverse the damage from or slow the progression of neurological disorders, and possible cures for cancer and other diseases and disorders are the possible benefits too much to ignore? The ability to self-regenerate is one the things that makes the stem cell such an appealing area to study. Most cells and organs in the body do not have the ability to self-regenerate, nor self-repair but stem cells can do both. Stem cells themselves are unspecialized, in that they have so special function (Stem Cell Basics, 2009). Part of the beauty of the stem cell is that through cellular...
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...Parkinson's Disease and Stem Cell Treatment ____________________________________________________________ _ Abstract Parkinson's disease is a neurogenerative disease characterized by a progressive loss of the dopaminergic neurones in the substantia nigra, pars compacta in the midbrain ( Borta & Hoglinger, 2006). Stem cells derived from embryos or fetal tissues have been introduced in the clinic as an alternative treatment for parkinson’s disease. Because of their self-renewal capacity and pluripotentiality, human embryonic stem cells are thought to hold enormus promise as potential replacement tissue in neurodegenerative disease such as Parkinson’s. Pluripotential embryonic stem cells, neural tissue derived stem and phenotype-specified progenitor cells have been investigated for their ability to generate neurons and glia, and the molecular mechanism by which they do so (Goldman & Windrem, 2006). Logistical issues, in particular the difficulty in obtaining ample supply of fetal ventral mesencephalic cells coupled with their poor graft survival, limit the clinical applicability of fetal dopamine cell transplants. This review evaluates human neural stem cells as a graft source for Parkinson's disease. ____________________________________________________________ ____________ Introduction Parkinson's disease is a relatively common disorder of the nervous system that afflicts patients later in life with tremor, slowness of movement, instability and rigidity. Treatment...
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...ABSTRACT Stem cells have offered much hope by promising to greatly extend the numbers and range of patients who could benefit from transplants, and to provide cell replacement therapy to treat debilitating diseases such as diabetes, Parkinson's and Huntington's disease. The issue of stem cell research is politically charged, prompting biologists to begin engaging in ethical debates, Stem cell research offers great promise for understanding basic mechanisms of human development and differentiation, as well as the hope for new treatments. However, human stem cell research also raises sharp ethical and political controversies. This paper will discuss the types of stem cells as well as some of the controversies involved in stem cell research. Introduction According to Wikipedia, stem cell can be defined as “biological cells found in all multicellular organisms, that can divide (through mitosis) and differentiate into diverse specialized cell types and can self-renew to produce more stem cells.” A stem cell could be regarded as one of the basic building blocks of the human body. Stem cells are important because they have the ability to become different cell types, and scientists are working on developing ways to use stem cells to repair or regenerate damaged organs or tissues. This could lead to therapies for a whole range of conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, Parkinson's disease or Alzheimer's, although at present it is impossible to tell whether this will happen...
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