STEM-CELL transplantation holds great promise for regeneration of diseased,damaged,or defective tissue.
Hematopoetic cells, are already used to restore hematopoeitic cells,however ,rapid stem advances in stem-cells research have raised the possibility that other stem-cell types,too,may soon be routinely employed replacement of other cells and tissues.Two properties of stem cells underlie their utility and promise.They have capability to give rise to more differentiated cells,and they are self-renewing,because each division of stem cell creates at least one stem.If stem cells are classified according to their descent and develpomental potential,four levels of stem cells can be recognised: totipotent,pluripotent,multipotent,and unipotent.
The transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells(HSCs)is an important therapy for patients whose hematopoeitic systems must be replaced.It has three major applications:
1. Providing a functional immune system to individuals with a genetically determined immunodeficiency,such as severe combined immunodeficiency(SCID).
2. Replacing a defective hematopoietic system with functional one to curesome life-threatening nonmalignant genetic disorder in hematopoiesis,such as sickle-cell anemia or thalassemia.
3. Restoring the hematopoietic system of cancer patients after treatment with doses of chemotherapeutic agents and radiation so high that they destroy the system.These high-dose regimens can be much more effectve at killing tumor cellsthan are therapies that use more conventional doses of cytotoxic agents.Stem-cell transplantation makes it possible to recover from such drastic treatment.Also,certain cancers,such as some of acute myeloid luekemia,can be cured only by destroying the source of leukemia cells, the patient's own hematopoeitic system.
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| Human pluripotent stem cells. |
The transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells(HSCs)is an important therapy for patients whose hematopoeitic systems must be replaced.It has three major applications:
1. Providing a functional immune system to individuals with a genetically determined immunodeficiency,such as severe combined immunodeficiency(SCID).
3. Restoring the hematopoietic system of cancer patients after treatment with doses of chemotherapeutic agents and radiation so high that they destroy the system.These high-dose regimens can be much more effectve at killing tumor cellsthan are therapies that use more conventional doses of cytotoxic agents.Stem-cell transplantation makes it possible to recover from such drastic treatment.Also,certain cancers,such as some of acute myeloid luekemia,can be cured only by destroying the source of leukemia cells, the patient's own hematopoeitic system.
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