History and perspective of stem cell research - University of.pdfVIP

Best Practice Research Clinical Obstetrics and Gynaecology Vol. 18, No. 6, pp. 827–842, 2004 doi:10.1016/j.bpobgyn.2004.09.002 available online at 1 History and perspective of stem cell research Ariff Bongso* DSc, DVM, MSc, PhD, FRCOG (ad eundem) Mark Richards BSc Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, National University Hospital, Kent Ridge, Singapore 119074 Several types of stem cell have been discovered from germ cells, the embryo, fetus and adult. Each of these has promised to revolutionize the future of regenerative medicine through the provision of cell-replacement therapies to treat a variety of debilitating diseases. Stem cell research is politically charged, receives considerable media coverage, raises many ethical and religious debates and generates a great deal of public interest. The tremendous versatility of embryonic stem cells versus the unprecedented reports describing adult stem cell plasticity have ignited debates as to the choice of one cell type over another for future application. However, the biology of these mysterious cells have yet to be understood and a lot more basic research is needed before new therapies using stem-cell-differentiated derivatives can be applied. Stem cell research opens-up the new field of ‘cell-based therapies’ and, as such, several safety measures have also to be evaluated. Key words: adult stem cell; differentiation; embryonic stem cell; hESC; multipotent; plasticity; pluripotent; reparative medicine; self-renewal; stem cell; totipotent; transdifferentiation. Man has long been fascinated by the regenerative abilities of certain animals. Regeneration is a remarkable physiological process in which remaining tissues organize to reform a missing body part. Several invertebrates, such as planarian flatworms and Hydra, regenerate tissues with speed an