Platelets from stem cells
Stem cells will replace donated blood
Tatiana Bateneva, Rossiyskaya GazetaResearchers from Japan have proposed a new way to obtain platelets without using donated blood.
This was reported by the website of the Stem Cell magazine.
(The journal in which the article was published by Nakamura et al. Expandable Megakaryocyte Cell Lines Enable Clinically Applicable Generation of Platelets from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells, actually called a little longer, Cell Stem Cell, and the news source, the press release New stem cell method may eliminate need for blood donations to maintain platelet supply, is published on the EurekAlert website! - VM.)
Platelets are one of the fractions of blood that is responsible for its clotting. They are often necessary for the treatment of patients with extensive wounds, injuries, bleeding, as well as for certain diseases. But until now, they could only be obtained from donated blood, which is often not enough. In addition, platelets are stored at room temperature and therefore have a short shelf life. There is another problem – although the first platelet transfusion does not cause an immune reaction in the recipient with any blood type, repeated transfusion can cause it, which is life-threatening.
Researchers from Japan were able to overcome these limitations by developing a new technology for obtaining functional human platelets from stem cells, which are called induced pluripotent. These are stem (initial) cells that can be isolated from various human organs. After certain influences, they, in turn, are able to transform into various types of cells.
Japanese scientists have managed to isolate and modify them genetically so that they turn into megakaryocytes – platelet precursor cells. These are large bone marrow cells that can produce platelets in huge quantities. According to their properties, such platelets are no different from donor ones. The only difference is that megakaryocytes can be stored in a frozen state for a long time without losing their properties.
Diagram from an article in Cell Stem Cell – VM
"We have created a stable and immortal cell line that will allow the production of platelets in any required quantity," said Dr. Koji Eto, head of a group of scientists from Kyoto and Tokyo Universities. If the technology can be scaled for clinical purposes, it will solve one of the serious problems of modern medicine.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru14.02.2014