When Adrienne Shapiro’s daughter Marissa was diagnosed with sickle cell disease, doctors said she would not live to her first birthday. However, when Marissa managed to get past that benchmark, it didn’t mean the end of Adrienne’s worries. In fact, it was the beginning of many painful years of blood transfusions and immune disorders. When an inappropriate blood transfusion caused a severe reaction that led to the removal of her gallbladder and Marissa’s temporary kidney failure, she was unable to receive any more blood transfusions.
Fortunately for Marissa, however, a project sponsored by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), led by Don Kohn, MD at UCLA, was beginning a clinical trial. The aim of the project was’ to extract the patient’s bone marrow and correct the genetic defect in the blood-forming stem cells. Those cells can then be reintroduced into the patient to create a new, healthy blood system. ” The success of this clinical trial has given Adrienne hope that, with the help of regenerative medicine, her daughter will be able to lead a healthy, pain-free life. .
The Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cells at the University of Wisconsin-Madison describes ‘Regenerative Medicine’ as “a new scientific and medical discipline focused on harnessing the power of stem cells and the body’s own regenerative abilities to restore function to damaged cells, tissues and organs.”
Stem cells found in the umbilical cord blood of newborn children have the ability to renew and regenerate themselves. A stem cell, through the process of mitosis, can divide to become a specialized cell, such as a brain cell or a muscle cell, or remain a stem cell. They are also capable of repairing internal damage caused by any type of disease, disorder or trauma. Stem cell transplantation, stem cell grafting, and regenerative medicine are some of the ways these cells are used to cure disorders and diseases.
Regenerative medicine includes a wide range of scientific disciplines, such as biochemistry, genetics, molecular biology, and immunology. Scientists in these fields have been conducting research and studies in this field and have identified three methods of using regenerative medicine. They are cell therapies, tissue engineering and medical devices and artificial organs.
Cell Therapies – In this method, cellular materials, in most cases adult stem cells, are extracted and stored and then injected at the site of injury, tissue damage, or disease. These cells thereafter repair damaged cells or regenerate new cells to replace damaged ones.
Tissue engineering – This method is related to the field of biomaterial development and uses a combination of working tissues, cells and scaffolds to engineer a fully functioning organ that is then implanted in the recipient’s body in place of a damaged organ or tissue.
Medical devices and artificial organs – When an organ in the body fails, the most common treatment method is to replace it with an organ from a donor. Donor organs are not readily available and can be an obstacle in such cases. Even if a donor is available, you may need to take immunosuppressive medications before transplantation, and these medications are known to cause side effects. In such circumstances, medical devices that mimic the function of the failed organ can be used instead of transplantation. An example of one of these devices is the ventricular assist device (VAD) that is used in place of heart transplants.
Since regenerative medicine deals with the use of stem cells, it occasionally requires embryonic stem cells for research purposes. This use of embryonic stem cells can often raise questions about ethics and legality. Laws and regulations regarding regenerative medicine are different in different countries. The creation of human embryos for research is only legally permitted in three countries. Most countries only allow the extraction of cells from surplus IVF embryos. A recent study, related to the Human Embryonic Stem Cell (hECS) research policy, was conducted which revealed that the UK, Sweden and Belgium were very permissive in authorizing the creation of human embryos for research, while Luxembourg, Austria, Poland and Ireland did not have laws regarding HECS. The hESC laws in most other countries range from being slightly restrictive to very restrictive.
Regenerative medicine is the future of modern medical treatments. Scientists are conducting clinical trials and studies every day to further improve and improve in this area of medicine.