Table of contents:
- What are stem cells?
- What are the types of stem cells?
- Embryonic stem cells
- Non-embryonic stem cells or adult stem cells
- Stem cells from the umbilical cord
- What are the uses of stem cells?
- Controversy over the treatment of chronic diseases with stem cells
In the body, there are many types of cells that work to make all your organs function properly. However, have you ever heard of stem cells? In the medical world, stem cells are currently a topic that is quite hotly discussed, because these cells have "special" abilities and can be a new breakthrough in treating various chronic diseases.
What are stem cells?
Basically, all individuals come from a single cell called the zygote - the cell that combines the female egg and male sperm. Then, this cell divides into two, then four cells, and so on. After dividing, these cells will naturally take on their respective roles and responsibilities in the body. This process is called differentiation.
Stem cells or stem cells are cells that are still "plain" and do not have any function. If you remember your lesson in school, each network consists of cells that have their respective functions. For example, muscle cells that function to maintain muscle function.
Meanwhile, stem cells are not like other cells. This cell is like pure and has not been given any responsibility, it has not yet gone through the process of being differentiated. In addition, this type of cell has the ability and can divide as much as needed. Both of these abilities make stem cells considered "special" and can be used to treat a disease.
What are the types of stem cells?
There are several types of stem cells that can be used in medical research, namely:
Embryonic stem cells
Cells taken from the embryo - the zygote cells that are already developing and dividing - are about 3-5 days old. Usually these cells are obtained from the process of IVF, so they are not taken from the womb of a woman who has an embryo. These embryonic stem cells have a very long life, can reproduce themselves hundreds of times, and are pluripotent or can develop into any cell in the body. however until now the use of embryonic stem cells is still quite controversial.
Non-embryonic stem cells or adult stem cells
Despite the name, this type of cell is still taken from the body of babies or children. These stem cells come from various tissues that are still in the development stage. This type of cell can only multiply according to the role it has received previously. For example, hematopoietic stem cells are adult stem cells that come from bone marrow and function to make new blood cells.
Stem cells from the umbilical cord
These cells are taken from the umbilical cord and placenta of newborns which are then immediately stored in a stem cell bank for future use. These types of cells can help treat blood cancer and blood disorders in children.
What are the uses of stem cells?
Body cells that are already "working" on a tissue, have the ability to multiply only a few times before they are damaged. Meanwhile, stem cells have the ability to make themselves a lot, to infinity - according to the body's needs. So these cells are thought to be able to rebuild a damaged tissue.
This ability is considered to be used to help treat various diseases, especially chronic diseases. There have been many studies trying to understand and test the use of stem cells. From many of these studies, it is known that these stem cells have the potential to treat various diseases such as:
- Stroke
- Burns
- Rheumatism
- Heart disease
- Visual disturbances, such as damage to the retina
- Parkison's disease
- Cancer
- Hearing impairment
Controversy over the treatment of chronic diseases with stem cells
Although stem cells are believed to have great potential in the medical field, treatment using these cells still raises pros and cons. This controversy arises because the stem cells that can be used to treat all these diseases are obtained directly from the embryo.
Embryos taken from stem cells can experience disruption to death. For some people who oppose this stem cell therapy, assume that the embryo is the form of the earliest humans, so this therapy is no different from killing humans.