Research on Stem Cell for Kidney Treatment
I. Description of the Technology
Stem cell can become any one of the
220 different cells in our body. It can be
in the brain, lungs, heart, liver and even
in kidney. This means that there is a big
possibility that stem cell can cure the
damage in any one these organs
including the most That stem cell can
cure the damage in anyone these organs
including the most controversial disease
in this generation – the kidney failure.
Demand for kidney transplants is increasing. High blood pressure and type II
diabetes are on the rise and are contributing to higher rates of kidney disease. But there
are not enough donor organs to meet this growing need. Stem cell based therapies may
offer an alternative solution. (Google 2014)
The Kidney Structure
Kidney Stem Cell
Scientists are still debating whether kidney stem cells
exist in the adult body and if so, where they are found and
how they can be identified. Cells found in a number of places
within the nephrons have been proposed as candidates for
kidney stem cells. The most convincing evidence for the
existence of such stem cells is the discovery of a group of
cells at the urinary pole of the Bowman’s capsule of the
nephron (marked in blue in the diagram above). These cells
have some of the key features of stem cells and researchers
have shown them to be responsible for production of
podocytes – specialized cells involved in the filtration work of
the nephron and that need to be replaced continuously
Scientist Studying Kidney Stem Cell
throughout our lifetime. (google 2014)
Studies also suggest that these same proposed stem cells might be able to generate a
second type of specialized cell found in the nephron lining, called proximal tubular epithelial
cells. Other suggested locations for kidney stem cells include certain places in the tubules
(marked green in the diagram). As well as kidney stem cells, cells with some of the
characteristics of Mesenchymal Stem Cells have very recently been isolated from the kidney.
II. How It Works?
3 Research Studies:
a. Kidney disease and Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSC)
One type of stem cell that scientists are using in kidney research is the “induced
pluripotent stem cell” (iPSC). Induced pluripotent stem cells are made by reprogramming
adult, specialised cells of the body to act like embryonic stem cells. They have the ability to
develop into any cell or tissue in the body. Recently researchers have been able to use
iPSCs to produce kidney cells in a very early stage of development. These very early kidney
cells resemble cells found in the embryo that will turn into the cells that eventually make up
the kidney in fetal development. These cells could have the potential to make the
glomerulus and tubules, the building blocks of the nephron.
In one report, scientists extracted kidney cells and
reprogrammed them so they could behave like other kidney cells.
In a second related study, they collected kidney cells from urine
and were also able to reprogram them. The next step is to see if
the cell lines -- called induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) -- can
be expanded, and then injected back into people with kidney
disease to develop functional tissue and/or organs. While this may
be years off and there are many steps left to take, the technology
has the potential to cure certain hereditary forms of kidney
disease and acute kidney injury, and could eliminate the need for
dialysis and/or kidney transplants in some patients with end-stage
kidney disease. (Google 2014)
Stem Cell Transplant
Procedure
b. Kidney disease and Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSC)
A number of different types of cells from the bone marrow have been tested in
animals and in clinical studies for potential use in kidney disease. Amongst all the cells
under investigation, Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) have shown the most promising
results to date. Studies suggest that MSCs may be able to enhance the intrinsic ability of the
kidney to repair itself.
MSCs of the bone marrow can differentiate to produce specialized bone, fat and
cartilage cells. Researchers investigating the therapeutic effects of these MSCs within the
kidney have suggested these cells may release proteins that can help kidney cells to grow,
inhibit cell death and that could encourage the kidney’s own stem cells to repair kidney
damage. Further research is needed to establish whether these ideas are correct and if so,
how this could lead to a treatment for patients.
Cells with some of the features of MSCs
appear to exist in many other organs as well as
the
bone
marrow,
though
there
is
much
controversy amongst scientists about the exact
nature of such cells and their roles in the body.
Recently, cells with MSC-like features have been
isolated from the kidney. These so-called kidney
MSCs are distinctly different from bone marrow
MSCs and heart MSCs. More research is needed
to identify their precise role in normal kidney
maintenance and to investigate their potential to
enhance the kidney’s ability to regenerate or repair
itself after damage.
c. Kidney disease and the Organ Scaffolds
An alternative approach to organ replacement is also under investigation and may
help kidney disease patients in the future: The use of organ scaffolds to produce whole,
transplantable organs. Organ scaffolds are organs from which all the cells have been
removed. What remains is the extracellular matrix – the part of the organ that supports its
shape. This matrix can be seeded with a patient’s own cells, which can be carefully nurtured
to grow and multiply to re-cover the scaffold. By using the patient’s own cells, the
complications of immune rejection that can occur with organ transplantations are drastically
reduced. The challenge with this approach is identifying and obtaining the right types of cells
to seed the scaffold, especially in organs with complex structures made up of many different
cells. IPSCs or the recently identified kidney MSCs could be useful candidate cells for
seeding kidney organ scaffolds. (Google 2014)
Can stem cells be used to treat kidney disease today?
Stem cell treatments for kidney disease have not yet been developed. The kidney is
a very complex organ consisting of a large number of different types of cells. To make a new
kidney in the lab, all these different cells would need to be produced in a different way and
mixed together in the hope that they would eventually recreate a functional kidney. What's
more, kidney disease comes in many flavours with different cells affected and so treatments
aiming to replace damaged cells within a patient's kidney would need to supply different
types of cells for different patients. Research on organ or cell replacement therapies is
ongoing, but this is likely to be a long-term goal.
In the meantime, stem cells may benefit patients in other ways. For example, stem
cells can be used to help progress our understanding of the disease through studies on the
development and behavior of kidney cells grown in large numbers in the laboratory. Stem
cell research may also enable us to utilize the body's own repair mechanisms to find
treatments for kidney disease. In acute kidney disease, the body can often repair kidney
damage itself, but it is unable to do this well enough to tackle the progressive damage that
occurs in chronic kidney disease. The recent identification of mesenchymal-stem-cell-like
cells in the kidney may open up new possibilities for enhancing the body's own capacity for
regeneration and repair of damaged kidneys. Investigating these possibilities by studying
how these newly discovered cells work is currently an important area of research.
Researchers also continue to explore new ideas using emerging technologies in stem cell
research, such as reprogramming cells to change their behavior. (Google 2014)
III.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Advantages
Disadvantages
1. The ease of collection and the high
frequency
of
reprogramming
also
means there may be benefits to urine
cells
for
iPSC
production
beyond
1. The use of embryonic stem cells
involves the destruction of blastocysts
formed from laboratory-fertilized human
eggs. For those people who believe
that life begins at conception, the
kidney disease."
blastocyst is a human life and to
destroy it is immoral and unacceptable.
cell
2. Like any other new technology, it is also
therapy could regenerate the damaged
completely unknown what the long-term
part of the kidney and prevent things
effects of such an interference with nature
from ever getting that far to kidney
could materialize.
2. Intervening
earlier
with
dialysis or kidney transplant.
stem
3. It is easy and simple. Stem cell can be
found also in urine.
3. Embryonic stem cells may not be the
solution
4. An advantage of the usage of adult
stem cells to treat disease is that a
patient's own cells could be used to
for
all
ailments.
4. According to a new research, it was used on
heart disease patients. It was found that it can
make
their
coronary
arteries
narrower.
treat a patient. Risks would be quite
reduced
because
patients'
bodies
would not reject their own cells.
5. Embryonic stem cells can develop into
any cell types of the body, and may
then be more versatile than adult stem
cells.
5.
A
disadvantage
is
that
they
are
prespecialized; for instance, blood stem cells
make only blood, and brain stem cells make
only
brain
cells.
(Google n.d.)
Bibliography
google. 2014. http://www.telegraph.co.uk (accessed September 12, 2014).
Google. http://www.buzzle.com/articles/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-stem-cell-research.html.
Google. 2014. http://m.eurostemcell.org (accessed September 12, 2014).
Google. 2014. http://www.sciencedaily.com (accessed September 12, 2014).