CANADA: Stem Cells Prompt Mouse Organ To Regenerate

[Murray Charters <mcharters@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

CBC NEWS Canada
Stem cells prompt mouse organ to regenerate
Last Updated Mon, 23 Jun 2003 20:28:18

ST. JOHN'S, NFLD. - Canadian researchers have discovered stem cells can help 
regenerate damaged cells in the pancreas
of mice. The results represent a shift in how scientists think about stem 
cells, and may offer hope for new diabetic
treatments.

INDEPTH: Storm over Stem Cells


Stem cells are like the body's blank slates. The cells appear early in 
embryonic development and can become specialized
as muscles, tissues and organs. Stem cells are produced throughout an animal's 
life in the bone marrow.

Under the right conditions, stem cells can become blood and immune cells. 
That's why bone marrow transplants are
sometimes offered to cancer patients.

New research suggests stem cells may play a much greater therapeutic role than 
previously believed.

"What we were able to do was demonstrate that adult bone marrow stem cells were 
capable of homing to a site of injury,
specifically the pancreas, and trigger the cells to regenerate themselves 
within seven to 14 days," said Dr. Mick
Bhatia, director of stem cell research at the Robarts Research Institute In 
London, Ont.

In the experiment, Bhatia damaged the pancreas of mice, effectively causing 
them to become diabetic and unable to
produce insulin.

When he injected bone marrow from adult mice back into the injured mice, their 
blood glucose levels reduced rapidly and
their insulin levels rose. As expected, all of the animals that did not receive 
transplants continued to show high
glucose levels.

Other researchers have injected stem cells into mice, focusing on the rate at 
which stem cells become other types of
tissues.

Bhatia's research differed by looking at whether the mouse in fact recovered. 
They were surprised to find a few stem
cells were enough to make a big metabolic difference, and that led them to 
discover the effects on a whole organ.

No human trials are planned yet. Since the results were published Sunday in the 
journal Nature Biotechnology,

Bhatia said his phone has been ringing off the hook with calls from physicians 
across North America.

"There certainly is no immediate hurdle to prevent trials like that to go on," 
he said. "The first thing we need to
know is whether the human pancreas and human cells will recapitulate what we 
see in the mouse."

FROM JAN. 30, 2001: Canadian research furthers stem cell growth


Bhatia plan to turn to other cell types besides the pancreas to find out 
whether stem cells will also help regenerate
nervous and cardiac tissues.

SOURCE: CBC News Online, Canada


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