At the beginning, apart from rites and rituals, healing of
the sick was mainly by using herbs. The process was tedious and the healing was
slow but the side effects were at a minimum. Administering drugs , extracted
from natural resources or synthesized was the modus operandi of western
medicine. These were more potent but the side effects were severe especially if
not prescribed by a qualified practitioner. Surgical operations prior to 1820
had many casualties.
With the introduction of the germ theory by Louis Pasteur
(Fr.) the doctors were able to identify the cause of many diseases. Cleanliness
in hospitals and sterilization advanced by Ignaz Semelweiss (Hung) and Louis
Pasteur (UK) drastically reduced the death rates after surgery. A very
important milestone in medicine was the discovery of Penicillin by Sir
Alexander Fleming in 1928.Discovery of Nuclear Radiation paved the way for
Radio therapy and diagnostic appliances such as X’ ray machines, endoscopy
units and cat scans.
Then came the technique of organ transplanting. The first
kidney transplant was in 1954.but the real breakthrough was the substitution of
Louis Washansky’s diseased heart with that of
the dead girl Denise Darvali by Dr Christian Barnard. (SA) Although
the man survived only for fourteen days the news criss-crossed the globe
causing an uproar.
Transplanting has become very popular today, but it has many
draw backs. So scientist were out to explore other possibilities of healing the
in-efficient or corrupt organs and tissues. One such method is the ‘stem cell’
treatment.
What are ‘stem cells’?
These are rudimentary cells which have to be trained or
modified for a special function in the body. These can replicate any number of
times without losing vim and vogour unlike other human cells. There are three kinds of cells (up to 21/11/07) used
for research. Today an on line news item declared that another kind has been
obtained from mature skin cells.
Types of stem cells.
1. Embryonic stem
cells. ESC
2. Adult stem
cells……..ASC
3. Umbilical cord
blood cells
4. Menstrual blood
stem cells
4. Converted adult
stem cells.(Since Nov. 2007)
1. Embryonic stem cells. ESC
When a female reproductive cell , the egg, gets fertilized,
it becomes an embryo. This divides into two, then four and so on producing a
mass of identical cells. Such a cluster of cells called a ‘blastoplast’ then
adhere to the mother’s womb and start a parasitic life. The cells in it may be
removed for medical applications. The doctors do not have a free hand on this
as the process would amount to an
abortion.
A way out is to get the donated human egg cells, from a
family planning clinic fertilize them in vitro and grow them in culture for
four days until the blastoplast stage is reached. The stem cells inside could
be withdrawn with a syringe and used without leaving room for objections.
2. Adult stem cells.
Some stem cells are
found in most of the organs in adults too. These are capable of developing into
cells required by the particular organ. For example a stem cell in the brain
can develop into a ‘neuron’, a specialized brain cell. Epithelial cells for the
villi in the small intestine are formed from the stem cells in the ‘crypt’
regions.
There is lot of promise with regard to these cells though
they are not so adaptable as ESCs. There had been some progress in the use of
these for the treatment of diabetes and Parkinson.
3. Umbilical cord
blood cells.
Umbilical cord of a new born baby has some maternal blood.
This blood may be collected, with the permission of the mother. Dr. Randall
Urban says “We are not sure why stem cells exist in U C B or whether they
circulate in everyone."
Stem Cell Therapy Vs Organ transplanting
In stem cell therapy stem cells are introduced to the
diseases organ. In many cases it has been found that the host organ adopts the
new cells and converts them to suit its requirements. This is much simpler than
organ transplanting. It is not easy to get organs that will tally with the
patients exact requirements. The patient’s immunity system has to be weakened
by drugs to prevent rejection. Connecting all the veins, arteries and nerves of
the organ is a very tedious and a time consuming process. On the other hand,
inserting of stem cells can be performed just like giving an injection. The
rejection tendencies are very low.
A few success stories
October 25, 2007
Eye surgeon Virendar Sangwan has perfected a procedure so
cutting-edge that most who have tried it have failed. In an operating theater
in the central Indian city of Hyderabad, he surgically implants corneas grown
in a petri dish from stem cells by his colleague Geeta Vemuganti in patients
with damaged eyes. Together they perform about 80 corneal regeneration
procedures a year, making the L.V. Prasad Eye Institute where they work one of
the most prolific facilities in the world using stem cells to regenerate tissue
of any kind. .
An extract from an Advertisement.
Warnings
As all stem cells have the ability to multiply in an
unlimited manner unlike the other cells, which are destined to die, they could
easily turn into cancer cells. So some doctors have cautioned that much more
research has to be done prior to begin this kind of treatment in a big way.
An up-dated
version of what was published in the ISLAND S.L on 6/11/2005.
