Stem Cell Research: Are We Playing God? What Islam Says Dr Naveed Syed presents at the Birmingham Council of Faiths event,'Science Faith: Are we Playing God?' The event, part of National Interfaith Week 2013 an... By: Birmingham Council of Faiths … Continue reading →

Madison, Wisconsin - University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (SMPH) researchers have discovered a very early regulatory event that controls the production of blood stem cells and the adult blood system. Video: The dorsal aorta (magenta), a major blood vessel in a mammalian embryo, is the site where the bodys first blood-producing stem cells emerge. Budding out of the endothelial cells that line the inside of the blood vessel, the adult blood stem cells (green) - those same cells that produce a lifetime of blood - are formed. The image was produced by Xin Gao using confocal microscopy. Corrupting the process of stem cell production during development can be lethal at an early stage of an embryos development, but problems with production during adulthood can yield a variety of diseases like leukemia. The dorsal aorta, a major blood vessel in a mammalian embryo, is the site where the bodys first blood-producing stem cells emerge. Budding out of the endothelial cells that line the inside of the blood vessel, the adult blood stem cells - those same cells that produce a lifetime of blood - are formed. A protein known as RUNX-1 allows these hemogenic (hemo- meaning blood, … Continue reading →

Researchers at MIT and Brigham and Womens Hospital have shown that they can grow unlimited quantities of intestinal stem cells, then stimulate them to develop into nearly pure populations of different types of mature intestinal cells. Using these cells, scientists could develop and test new drugs to treat diseases such as ulcerative colitis. The small intestine, like most other body tissues, has a small store of immature adult stem cells that can differentiate into more mature, specialized cell types. Until now, there has been no good way to grow large numbers of these stem cells, because they only remain immature while in contact with a type of supportive cells called Paneth cells. In a new study appearing in the Dec. 1 online edition of Nature Methods, the researchers found a way to replace Paneth cells with two small molecules that maintain stem cells and promote their proliferation. Stem cells grown in a lab dish containing these molecules can stay immature indefinitely; by adding other molecules, including inhibitors and activators, the researchers can control what types of cells they eventually become. This opens the door to doing all kinds of things, ranging from someday engineering a new gut for patients with … Continue reading →