Ability to repair cartilage with stem cells steps closer (MedicalNewsToday)
The day that patients with osteoarthritis can ease their painful joints by using stem cell therapy to regenerate damaged cartilage took a step closer recently when researchers reported successfully producing cartilage in rats using embryonic stem cells.
The success is attributed to a new procedure or protocol fur using human embryonic stem cells, developed under strict laboratory conditions, by the researchers at the University of Manchester in the UK.
The researchers report a study about their work - funded by Arthritis Research UK - in the journal Stem Cells Translational Medicine. The study shows how they used the new protocol to grow and transform human embryonic stem cells into cartilage cells.
Leading the research is Sue Kimber, a professor in the Faculty of Life Sciences at Manchester, who, with her colleagues, hopes their approach could in future be used to treat the painful joint condition osteoarthritis. She notes:
"This work represents an important step forward in treating cartilage damage by using embryonic stem cells to form new tissue, although it's still in its early experimental stages."
Ost...
