OTTAWA — One of the most puzzling questions regarding stem cell research has been: Why are researchers so hungry for embryonic stem cells despite the controversy and dangers over their use and at the same time seem to be shunning non-controversial and much more successful adult stem cells? Paul Szabo, the resident expert on the matter in the Canadian House of Commons posited an answer in the debate on the Assisted Human Reproduction Act, Bill C-13 last week.
Quoting Dr. François Pothier, who has a Ph.D. in cellular biology and is a professor at Laval University, Szabo said that the answer is “There is no money in adult stem cell research”. Adult stem cells usually come from within the patient's own body and thus need not be purchased as would embryonic stem cells. Moreover, the use of embryonic stem cells would leave the patient dependent on costly anti-rejection drugs, whereas adult stem cells coming from the patient do not require such ongoing medications.
Szabo was outraged that researchers, with a pecuniary interest in embryonic stem cell research, would be allowed to sit on the board of the agency created to oversee such research. Szabo points out that the agency would have the authority to issue a license to authorize the use of human embryos for the purpose of research only if it is satisfied that the use is 'necessary' for the purpose of the proposed research.
Amendments to the bill which would have refused interested parties from sitting on the board and those aimed at defining “necessary” in the legislation were rejected.
See Szabo's full LifeSite News.)
Umbilical Cord Adult Stem Cells Could Repair Stroke Damage
St. Louis, MO — Adult stem cells extracted from umbilical cords may one day cure damage done by strokes, suggests new research by St. Louis University neurologists.
The researchers blocked an artery in the brain of rats to mimic strokes caused by blood clots, said Dr. Yi Pan, the neurologist who led the study. After the stroke, the researchers injected stem cells into arteries in the rats' necks.
The stem cells were originally taken from umbilical cord blood. Previous studies have shown that such cells may have the potential to produce many other cell types.
The scientists first cultured the stem cells in laboratory dishes, feeding the cells certain nutrients and growth factors. The treatment produces cells that look like brain cells, Pan said.
After a week, the rats that got stem cell injections could pull tape off their paws about as well as they could before the stroke. Rats that got only a saline solution took nearly three weeks to return to normal. The rats treated with stem cells also recovered other movements slightly more quickly than untreated rats, Pan said.
The results are encouraging, Pan said, but may not indicate that stem cells taken from cord blood can replace injured brain cells.
When the researchers examined brains from the rats, they found that most of the stem cells had died, even though the rats had recovered. That could indicate that stem cells produce proteins or hormones that may help heal damaged brain cells or direct neighboring neurons to take over the jobs of dead and dying cells, Pan said.
Pan presented the results of the study last Tuesday at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology in Honolulu.
(This article courtesy of Steven Ertelt and the Pro-Life Infonet email newsletter. For more information or to subscribe go to www.prolifeinfo.org or email infonet@prolifeinfo.org.)
