What Are Stem Cells?

If there is a particular answer towards longevity, that would be stem cells.

Stem cells are the building blocks of every possible tissue, organ, system and our body as a whole. They are renown for their ability to self-renewal and remarkable pluripotency. Self-renewal ability allows them to continuously divide to make more cells. Pluripotency, on the other hand, is the ability of differentiate, or specializing, into multiple lineage of cells. With both of these two unique traits, stem cells are crown as the holy grail of longevity. Simply put it, stem cells allow our body to self-rejuvenate, and recover from all possible kinds of injury; thus, extending our lives beyond.

Types of Stem Cells

Naturally, there are two main types of stem cells. They are embryonic stem cells (ESC) and adult stem cells. Embryonic stem cells are harvested from embryo. They are the main ancestor cells for our body. All possible differentiated cells come from ESCs as ESCs are highly pluripotent. However, due to legal and ethical concerns, medical usage of ESCs are highly controversial.

Adult stem cells can be furthered categorized into mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC). MSCs are stem cells harvested from adult source, mainly from bone marrow, adipose tissue (fat cells), umbilical cord (Wharton’s jelly) or amniotic fluid. IPSCs, on the other hand, is a man-made stem cell. iPSCs are made by reprogramming adult skin cell or blood cell back into undifferentiated stem cells. With the right biochemical environments, iPSCs are then differentiated into desired specialized cells for regenerative medicine.

Regardless of ESCs, MSCs or iPSCs, all these stem cells have two similar properties, which are self-renewal capability and pluripotency. Advanced medical technologies on stem cells then allow us to finally pave the way towards battling deadly diseases, and eventually, reaching the long sought after, longevity.

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Reference(s):

1. Avasthi, S., Srivastava, R. N., Singh, A., & Srivastava, M. (2008). Stem cell: past, present and future–a review article. Internet Journal of Medical Update, 3(1), 22+.