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Stem-Cell-Like-Cells Made Using Only Blood?

Posted by timothy on from the dreamcatcher dept.

Adair writes "Newscientist.com is reporting that a UK biotech firm, TriStem has developed a technique to 'turn ordinary blood into cells capable of regenerating damaged or diseased tissues.' Their method transforms anyone's white blood cells into 'stem-cell-like-cells' which can then be coaxed into one of a myriad of healthy cells such as heart, nerve, or brain. Having made these claims for years, TriStem has recently provided proof to their claims, which some scientists who witnessed called 'stunning."' They have some more proving to do, but if the initial results pan out, the applications could be fantastic -- and without the stigma of traditional stem-cell research."

3 of 47 comments (clear)

  1. Used for cobra bite necrosis? by Bob+Cat+-+NYMPHS · · Score: 3, Interesting

    There was a guy on Motel William's show yesterday who had been bitten and had a big hole in his abdomen after debriding the killed flesh. He said a frend of his had used white blood cells 'and sumtin' and he healed in 10 days. Anyone know if this is the same process?

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  2. If this is true... by Jesrad · · Score: 2, Interesting

    If this is true then we very well may be the last generation to have to die.

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  3. Re:Peer review? by XenonChloride · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Thanks, that was exactly what I missed in the whole thing. So far, their claim to "retrodifferentiate" blood cells to pluripotent stem cells (= similar to embryonal stem cells in the 8-cell-stadium) is questionable. It seems they simply went for profit and propaganda rather than for proof-reading by the scientific community.

    One (of many) more serious examples for (embryonal) stem cell research is given by D. Kaufman in PNAS 2001, 98(19), 10716-10721, for an online pdf version see Hematopoietic colony-forming cells derived from human embryonic stem cells.

    Although enthusiastic about their results, the authors are honest enough to warn in the last paragraph of the article mentioned above:

    The clinical promise of human ES cell-based therapies is great; however, because these therapies will be entirely novel, serious concerns about safety and efficacy will need to be addressed before human clinical trials can be initiated. The malignant transformation of cells that have been cultured for extended periods is a particular concern.

    This has indeed been observed by Mathias Hoehn at the Max-Planck-Institute for Neurological Research in Cologne, Germany. As far as I remember, the researchers had caused an apoplectic stroke in rats. One week later, they injected the animals with embryonal stem cells from mice. MRT scans showed that the stem cells travelled through the rat brain right to the damaged region and started to differentiate and form a network. The stem cells, originating from different specimen, had replaced damaged tissue.

    However, when the same stem cells (note: embryonal stem cells from mice) were used on mice, everything went out of control! Rather than moving to the damaged region, the stem cells started penetrating surrounding nerve cells and showed uncontrolled growth. In all mice examined, tumors were found!

    Keeping that in mind, I prefer to take all "scientific" announcements in non-peer-reviewed journals with a ton of salt.