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Scientists hope to:
Scientist are already using stem cells to help us understand how complex organisms develop from a fertilised egg. By identifying and understanding the mechanisms of cell division and specialisation we will know what controls normal development. Some of the most serious medical conditions, such as cancer and birth defects, are caused by abnormal cell division and differentiation. A better understanding of the genetic and molecular controls of these processes will help us to understand how these diseases develop. Also, in many cases it is difficult to get hold of the cells that are damaged in a disease, and to study them in detail. For example diseases related to the nervous system, like Multiple Sclerosis, Motor Neurone Disease or Parkinson’s. Here, scientists can use stem cells to model a disease in the lab, to better understand what goes wrong.
At the moment primary human liver cells are the ‘gold standard' cell type used to test drugs. These cells are derived from dead or donor tissue. They can only survive for three to five days and do not have the ability to multiply. These cells are therefore a scarce and expensive resource. Stem cells can be used to make many specialised liver cells that can be used to screen and test new drugs instead of the cells derived from dead or donor tissue. Many new drugs have nasty side effects so they cannot be used in the clinic even after lots of money has been spent on their development. For example, many drugs affect how the heart beats and scientists are hoping to screen for this side effect by testing them on beating heart cells that they have made in the lab from embryonic stem cells.
Stem cells are already used in the treatment of extensive burns, and to restore the blood system of some patients with leukaemia and other blood disorders. In the future, scientists hope that stem cells can be used to replace cells lost in many other devastating diseases for which there are currently no sustainable cures, for example:
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