Cord Blood, More Pluripotent Stem Cells
(From Medical News Today). The disadvantage of therapies based on stem cell transplants (rather than the use of adult stem cells from the patient) is the need for a reliable, scalable source of cells. Some researchers are digging into cord blood, with signs of early progress, such as "a small population of cord blood cells with the characteristics of more primitive stem cells that have the potential to produce a greater variety of cell types. ... Transplantation of these human cord blood stem cells into laboratory rodents with experimental strokes resulted in significant reductions in the size of brain lesion, and improved these animals' use of their limbs. ... Some of the transplanted stem cells developed into 'neuron-like' cells that are typically found in the brain. In addition, the transplanted cells also induced an unanticipated reorganization of host nerve fibers within the brain."
Link: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=37696