Mesenchyme, a type of embryonic connective tissue proliferates into almost all types of connective tissue as the embryo develops. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) can be found in the bone marrow, and other tissues, of individuals both young and old. In fact it is thought that all organs that contain connective tissue also house MSC. Due to their multipotent nature and the ability to grow them in culture, there has been much interest in these cells for tissue repair, gene therapy, treatment for autoimmune diseases and graft rejection.1
It is common knowledge among scientists that the umbilical cord blood (UCB) is a source for hematopoietic stem cells, however it was unknown whether it also contained MSC. Although MSC can be extracted from the bone marrow, the procedure is invasive and the number of MSC decreases with increasing age, so additional sources of these cells are highly sought out. One study, performed by Lee et al. (2004) practiced the isolation of MSC from UCB as well as induced differentiation into different tissues. They successfully showed that UCB does provide a new source for MSC. 2
The verification that UCB does contain MSC impacts disease outlook as well as recovery from surgery. For example, these cells can be used in organ transplants to prevent graft vs. host disease. In addition, patients with autoimmune diseases can experience health and wellness. Most importantly, this discovery gives scientists a greater chance to study the therapeutic uses of MSC because they will be easier to obtain, and more plentiful when retrieved from UCB. With the ability to regenerate damaged tissues, only the future will show the great impact that MSC in UCB will have on the scientific community and world as a whole.
1Vaananen, Kalervo H (2005) “Mesenchymal stem cells.” Annals of Medicine. 37:7. 469-479.
2Lee O, Kuo TK, Chen WM, Lee KD, Hsieh, SL and Chen TH (2004). “Isolation of multipotent Mesenchymal stem cells from umbilical cord blood.” Blood. 103:5. 1669-1675.