Over the past decade, significant efforts have been made to develop stem cell-based therapies for difficult to treat diseases. Multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells, also referred to as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), appear to hold great promise in regards to a regenerative cell-based therapy for the treatment of these diseases. Currently, more than 200 clinical trials are underway worldwide exploring the use of MSCs for the treatment of a wide range of disorders including bone, cartilage and tendon damage, myocardial infarction, graft-versus-host disease, Crohns disease, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, critical limb ischemia and many others. MSCs were first identified by Friendenstein and colleagues as an adherent stromal cell population within the bone marrow with the ability to form clonogenic colonies in vitro. In regards to the basic biology associated with MSCs, there has been tremendous progress towards understanding this cell populations phenotype and function from a range of tissue sources. Despite enormous progress and an overall increased understanding of MSCs at the molecular and cellular level, several critical questions remain to be answered in regards to the use of these cells in therapeutic applications. Clinically, both autologous and allogenic approaches for the transplantation of MSCs are being explored. Several of the processing … Continue reading →

Introduction: What are stem cells, and why are they important? What are the unique properties of all stem cells? What are embryonic stem cells? What are adult stem cells? What are the similarities and differences between embryonic and adult stem cells? What are induced pluripotent stem cells? What are the potential uses of human stem cells and the obstacles that must be overcome before these potential uses will be realized? Where can I get more information? An adult stem cell is thought to be an undifferentiated cell, found among differentiated cells in a tissue or organ that can renew itself and can differentiate to yield some or all of the major specialized cell types of the tissue or organ. The primary roles of adult stem cells in a living organism are to maintain and repair the tissue in which they are found. Scientists also use the term somatic stem cell instead of adult stem cell, where somatic refers to cells of the body (not the germ cells, sperm or eggs). Unlike embryonic stem cells, which are defined by their origin (cells from the preimplantation-stage embryo), the origin of adult stem cells in some mature tissues is still under investigation. Research … Continue reading →

Cell isolation Due to the low frequency at which mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) occur in tissues, it may be desirable to enrich for MSCs from a mixed cell population. No single, unique marker allowing for MSC isolation has been reported, but rather a range of composite cell surface phenotypes are utilized. Consequently, typical isolation methods employ a strategy of enrichment via depletion of undesired cell types. Cell isolation kits are available to obtain untouched mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from human bone marrow or mouse compact bone or selection of CD271+ MSCs from human bone marrow. The colony-forming unit - fibroblast (CFU-F) assay is used to quantify functional mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). MesenCult media are optimized for the quantification of MSCs using the CFU-F assay. In culture, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are defined as plastic-adherent, fibroblast-like cells which are able to self-renew and differentiate into bone, adipose and cartilage tissue. Optimized reagents are available for the differentiation of MSCs to adipocytes and osteogenic progenitors. STEMCELL Technologies provides both serum-containing (for human and mouse cells) and serum-free (for human cells) MesenCult media which are optimized for efficient expansion of MSCs in culture. Fetal bovine sera (FBS) are rigorously screened and selected based … Continue reading →

Medistem Panama - Inside our adult stem cell laboratory. Take a trip to our 8000 sq. ft. facility located in the prestigious City of Knowledge in Panama. See inside our 3 class 10000 clean rooms and go under one of... By: http://www.cellmedicine.com … Continue reading →