Developments in Stem Cell Research

The two broad categories of mammalian stem cells that exist are: embryonic stem cells, derived from blastocysts, and adult stem cells, which are found in adult tissues. In a developing embryo, stem cells are able to differentiate into all of the specialised embryonic tissues. In adult organisms, stem cells and progenitor cells act as a repair system for the body, replenishing specialised cells. As stem cells can be readily grown and transformed into specialised tissues such as muscles or nerves through cell culture, their use in medical therapies has been proposed. In particular, embryonic cell lines, autologous embryonic stem cells generated therapeutic cloning, and highly plastic adult stem cells from the umbilical cord blood or bone marrow are touted as promising candidates.Among the many applications of stem cell research are nervous system diseases, diabetes, heart disease, autoimmune diseases as well as Parkinson's disease, end-stage kidney disease, liver failure, cancer, spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, and Alzheimer's disease. Stem cells are self-renewing, unspecialised cells that can give rise to multiple types all of specialised cells of the body. Stem cell research also involves complex ethical and legal considerations since they involve adult, foetal tissue and embryonic sources. This new book presents the latest research in the field from around the globe. Human embryonic stem cells undergo osteogenic differentiation in human bone marrow stromal cell microenvironments / Wilbur Tong, Shelley E. Brown, and Paul H. Krebsbach Hyaluronic acid promotes osteochondrogenic differentiation from mesenchymal stem cells in a three-dimensional culture system / Kiyoshi Yoneno ... [et al.] Cell cycle regulation in maintaining immortality of embryonlic stem cells / Rajarshi Pal, Ashish Mehta, and Aparna Khanna Potential target molecules for ex vivo expansion of hematopoietic stem cells and their roles in normal hematopoiesis / Hirokazu Tanaka, Itaru Matsumura, and Yuzuru Kanakura Autotransplantation of purified mensenchymal stem cells in a patient with acute myocardial infarction: a case study / Zhen-Xing Zhanga ... [et al.] Human telomerase catalytic subunit (hTERT)-transfected mesenchymal stem-like cells derived from fetal liver promote ex vivo expansion of hematopoietic stem cells / Yu-xia Yang ... [et al.] Searching for bone marrow-derived cells in experimental models for renal injury: reporter systems revisited / Martine Broekema, Martin C. Harmsen, and Eliane R. Popa The regulatory function of microRNA in stem cells / Wei Wu, Vivien Wang, and Gang-Ming Zou Niche theory, stem-stromal imbalance, and aplastic anaemia / Sujata Law, Samaresh Chaudhuri Natural killer cell receptor NKG2A/HLA-E interaction dependent differential thymopoiesis of hematopoietic progenitor cells influences the outcome of HIV infection / Edmond J. Yunis, Viviana Romero, and Prasad Koka.