Clin Transl Sci. 2009 Jun;2(3):222-7.
The pandemic of chronic degenerative diseases associated with aging demographics mandates development of effective approaches for tissue repair. As diverse stem cells directly contribute to innate healing, the capacity for de novo tissue reconstruction harbors a promising role for regenerative medicine. Indeed, a spectrum of natural stem cell sources ranging from embryonic to adult progenitors has been recently identified with unique characteristics for regeneration. The accessibility and applicability of the regenerative armamentarium has been further expanded with stem cells engineered by nuclear reprogramming. Through strategies of replacement to implant functional tissues, regeneration to transplant progenitor cells or rejuvenation to activate endogenous self-repair mechanisms, the overarching goal of regenerative medicine is to translate stem cell platforms into practice and achieve cures for diseases limited to palliative interventions. Harnessing the full potential of each platform will optimize matching stem cell-based biologics with the disease-specific niche environment of individual patients to maximize the quality of long-term management, while minimizing the needs for adjunctive therapy. Emerging discovery science with feedback from clinical translation is therefore poised to transform medicine offering safe and effective stem cell biotherapeutics to enable personalized solutions for incurable diseases.
Properties of Stem cells platforms
Embryonic
- Blastocyst derived
- Pluripotent
- Highly malleable
Perinatal
- Isolated from perinatal sources
- Combines embryonic-like and adult-like stem cell pools
- Abundant at birth
Adult
- Obtained from multiple tissues
- Multipotent
- Includes hematopoietic and mesenchymal progenitors
Bioengineered
- Produced from somatic sources
- Utilizes therapeutic cloning or nuclear reprogramming
- Generates customized embryonic-like stem cells
