Text: THE FUTURE OF STEM CELLS

Health  Problems  that Might be  Treated by Stem Cells

What Is the Goal of Stem Cell Research?

Why don’t we live forever?

Because we get sick?

Because we get old?

Because we get hurt and can’t heal?

                All of these are correct. Each one results from a failure of the boby’s ability to grow, maintain, or repair itself – functions that depend on  our stem cells.

                In  What Are Some Different Types of Stem Cells?, we saw how stem cells form the basic building materials for the human body. This makes them good candidates for restoring tissues that have been damaged by injury or disease.

                For decades, researchers have been studying the biology  of stem cells to figure out  how development works and to find new ways of treating health problems.

                How would stem cell therapy work?

                The goal of any stem cell therapy is to repair a damaged tissue that can’t heal itself.

                This might be accomplished by transplanting stem cells into the damaged area and directing them to grow new, healthy tissue.

                It may also be possible to coax stem cells already in the body to work overtime and produce new tissue.

                 To date, researchers have found more success with the first method stem cell transplants.

Extracted from http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/tech/stemcells/scresearch.

Accessed on November 3, 2009.

Upgrade_Inglês -1- Estudo e Ensino. Editora Gisele Aga. – São Paulo: Richmond Educação, 2012