Shivendrasingh
Advantages & disadvantages with different source of stem cells
• Embryonic stem cells:
Advantages: Its pluripotent and can become ANY type of cells provided the total mechanism of differentiating them into ONLY one particular type of cells is feasible (Which is at the moment not feasible)
Disadvantage: The main issue is ethical as deriving the pluripotent stem cells from an embryo kills the embryo, a potential life. Moreover their pluripotency could lead them to form tumours (cancer) inside the body.
• Umbilical cord blood stem cells:
Advantages: Its otherwise discarded and could be stored to use as a substitute when a matched blood donor is not available. This has been in clinical use for the past 40 years or so in treating blood cancer. The antigenicity is lesser than that of the bone marrow.
Disadvantage: The contents stored (50-100cc) could be stored only for around 20 years and also the quantity stored would be sufficient only upto a child of weight 10-15kgs. Thereafter either it has to be expanded (which is very difficult at the moment) or another matched unit is to be used. The hematopoietic stem cells in cord blood is lowe than that of the bone marrow. The application of umbilical cord blood in diseases other than blood cancer or at research/clinical trial level.
• Foetal stem cells:
Advantages: Several organs of the foetus such as liver, Eye tissues and neural tissues contain more stem cells than adults and thei rejection is lesser than the adult stem cells.
Disadvantage: The main issue is ethical as deriving the stem cells from a foetus may lead to several social and allied problems, though there are guidelines to follow such as Only when sponatanouesly aborted, the cells should be used etc (varies from country to country).
• Adult Bone marrow stem cells:
Advantages: Its multipotent and has been in clinical application since 1950 for treating blood cancers. There are possibilities to store this if processed properly for...
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