Stemming vision loss with stem cells

Stemming vision loss with stem cells.

Dramatic advances in the field of stem cell research have raised the possibility of using these cells to treat a variety of diseases. The eye is an excellent target organ for such cell-based therapeutics due to its ready accessibility, the prevalence of vasculo- and neurodegenerative diseases affecting vision, and the availability of animal models to demonstrate proof of concept. In fact, stem ...

Stemming heart failure with cardiac- or reprogrammed-stem cells

Despite extensive efforts to control myocyte growth by genetic targeting of the cell cycle machinery and small molecules for cardiac repair, adult myocytes themselves appeared to divide a limited number of times in response to a variety of cardiac muscle stresses. Rare tissue-resident stem cells are thought to exist in many adult organs that are capable of self-renewal and differentiation and p...

Stemming species loss

A blueprint to save large numbers of the world’s flowering plants that face extinction by the end of the century was launched last month at Kew Gardens in London. One in eight plant species is endangered but the number is rising rapidly and 160 countries concerned about the potentially disastrous consequences have agreed to try to reverse the decline by 2010 but until now without a clear idea o...

Stemming the Degeneration: IVD Stem Cells and Stem Cell Regenerative Therapy for Degenerative Disc Disease.

The intervertebral disc (IVD) is immensely important for the integrity of vertebral column function. The highly specialized IVD functions to confer flexibility and tensile strength to the spine and endures various types of biomechanical force. Degenerative disc disease (DDD) is a prevalent musculoskeletal disorder and is the major cause of low back pain and includes the more severe degenerative...

Stemming bone loss by suppressing apoptosis.