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Adult Stem Cells:

A. Where are adult stem cells found, and what do they normally do?
Adult or somatic stem cells exist throughout the body after embryonic development and are found inside of different types of tissue. These stem cells have been found in tissues such as the brain, bone marrow, blood, blood vessels, skeletal muscles, skin, and the liver. They remain in a quiescent or nondividing state for years until activated by disease or tissue injury. Adult stem cells can divide or self-renew indefinitely, enabling them to generate a range of cell types from the originating organ or even regenerate the entire original organ. It is generally thought that adult stem cells are limited in their ability to differentiate based on their tissue of origin, but there is some evidence to suggest that they can differentiate to become other cell types.
Neural stem cells in the brain give rise to its three major cell types: nerve cells (neurons) and two categories of non-neuronal cellsastrocytes andoligodendrocytes

Astrocytes -Astrocytes (etymology: astron gk. star, cyte gk. cell), also known collectively
as astroglia, are characteristic star-shaped glial cells in the brain and spinal cord. They are the most abundant cell of the human brain. They perform many functions, including biochemical support of endothelial cells that form the bloodbrain barrier, provision of nutrients to the nervous tissue, maintenance of extracellular ion balance, and a role in the repair and scarring process of the brain and spinal cord following traumatic injuries.

Oligodendrcytes - Their main function is the insulation of axons Neurons nerve cells

Hematopoietic stem cells give rise to all the types of blood cells:
red blood cells, B lymphocytes, T lymphocytes, natural killer cells, neutrophils, basophils, eosinophils, monocytes, and macrophages

Mesenchymal stem cells give rise to a variety of cell types:


bone cells (osteocytes), cartilage cells (chondrocytes), fat cells (adipocytes), and other kinds of connective tissue cells such as those in tendons.

Epithelial stem cells: in the lining of the digestive tract occur in deep crypts and give rise to several cell types: absorptive cells, goblet cells (produce mucus), paneth cells epithial cells that help with immunity), and enteroendocrine cells (produces horomones).

The epidermal stem cells: occur in the basal layer of the epidermis and at the base of hair follicles to keratinocytes, which migrate to the surface of the skin and form a protective layer. The follicular stem cells can give rise to both the hair follicle and to the epidermis.

Muscle Stem Cell


After activation, these cells will proliferate and migrate to the site of injury to repair or replace damaged myofibers by fusing together and/or fusing to existing myofibers

What are the similarities and differences between embryonic and adult stem cells?
Human embryonic pluripotent - can become all cell types of the body


adult

can be grown relatively easily in culture propagating themselves indefinitely possibly more likely to be rejected
stem cells limited to differentiating into different cell types of their tissue of origin rare in mature tissues, so isolating these cells from an adult tissue is challenging more difficult to grow in culture Less likely to be rejected as one would use own stem cells.

Resources: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22281388 http://www.closerlookatstemcells.org/stem_cell_Types.htm http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2009-03-11/pdf/E9-5441.pdf

http://www.stemcellhistory.com/

http://stemcells.nih.gov/
http://www.isscr.org/ISSCR_emphasizes_rigorous_oversight_for_application_of_stem_cell_based_treat ments/4572.htm

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