“Latest Stem Cells News”

Image via Wikipedia

It raises hopes that kidney disease patients will one day be able to grow their own new organs with no risk of rejection.

Kidneys 5mm long – the size of those in foetuses – were made using a combination of cells from amniotic fluid, which surrounds babies in the womb, and animal foetal cells.

It is hoped the organs could be grown to maturity if implanted in a patient. In future, people’s amniotic fluid could be retained at birth, allowing it to be used later if they develop kidney disease.

‘The idea is to start with human stem cells and end up with a functioning organ,’ said physiologist professor Jamie Davies, whose University of Edinburgh team carried out the work.

‘We are working on how you turn cells floating about in liquid into something as precisely arranged as a kidney. We have made pretty good progress with that.

‘We can make something that has the complexity of a normal, foetal kidney but not an adult one yet.’

Stem cell technology could be ready for use on humans in about ten years, he said.

A US team has already shown a foetal kidney can be put into an adult animal and grown there. About 7,000 people are on the waiting list for kidney transplants but there is a serious shortage of the organs.

Incoming search terms:

A substantial donation made by Ferrari of 320.000 euros will aid in the development of activities ongoing at the Woman and Infant’s Research Laboratory at the University Hospital in Modena. The presentation of the laboratory, located on the 7th floor of the hospital, and recently restructured, was presented yesterday to Ferrari President Luca di Montezemolo, regional Health councilor Giovanni Bissoni, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia Aldo Tomasi, Mayor Pighi, President of the Province Sabattini, and the heads of the hospital.

Incoming search terms:

Guess what? The goobery white stuff (vernix) that coats newborns at birth is good for the skin.
Researchers discovered that leaving the white cheese on, rather than wiping it off, leaves the skin of babies healthier. Yes, you read that right: don’t scrub the newborn the minute she exits the womb—she’s not “dirty.”

Give me a moment. People actually went to college, got PhD’s, (probably post-docs and what-else) to “discover” that this smegma that covers a baby while it floats around in amniotic fluid for nine months is actually GOOD for the skin.
Oh, the wonders of the modern mind. What next, breast milk is the best human food?

Now, enter the business side. Skin Sciences Institute is figuring out exactly what the gunk is and how to patent a synthetic version. They claim this lotion can be used to speed healing and cure chronic skin conditions like eczema. This “stuff” is a mixture of fat and protein—the specifics top secret
They’ll need to produce a formula in the lab, since harvesting vernix from newborns might be awkward.

Incoming search terms: