Learning About Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
Embryonic stem cells are the same thing as the pluripotent stem cells but what is meant by the term induced pluripotent stem cells? First of all, it’s important to know that pluripotent stem cells are found in the inner cell mass of the embryo when it’s in the blastocyst or early stage. This usually starts about five days after the egg has been fertilized and will last for several weeks. During the blastocyst stage the embryo will contain between fifty to one hundred and fifty cells.
Pluripotent stem cells are the ones that have the potential to turn into any other cell in the body except for the egg or sperm cells. This is why they are so important to the future when it comes to treating and even possibly finding cures for many diseases that the world faces today. These cells have the potential to change the future and greatly enhance the quality of life as it's known today.
The embryonic stem cells are produced naturally and that is what makes them different from the induced pluripotent stem cells because these are manipulated by scientists in a laboratory. It’s hoped that induced pluripotent stem cells or IPS cells, will have the same potential as the naturally produced embryonic stem cells, that are used in human embryonic stem cell research. But there is still a lot of research needed to discover their full potential. In 2006 the very first IPS cells were developed in mice. Nevertheless, these were not practical to use because they were developed by using a retrovirus that modified the DNA in the somatic cells. More research led to a safer way to create IPS cells in the year 2008 when adenoviruses were used in place of the retroviruses but researchers still have a long way to go.
Induced pluripotent stem cells have many benefits because they don’t have the same ethical problems associated with the embryonic stem cells such as, how the stem cells are obtained. This could help people see the benefits of stem cell research without any negative connotation to the research. This is because the embryo had to be killed in order to obtain these cells and that was viewed by many as being the same thing as murder. Another ethical problem was the creation of clones to use as a means to obtain these stem cells but that would no longer be an issue either. It’s believed that the IPS cells will have all the same benefits as the original stem cells when used to treat patients with a few added advantages. For example, they can be derived from the cells of the host so they shouldn’t be rejected by the patient. Who knows what great possibilities lie ahead waiting to be discovered? Only time and research will tell.
At this point, it’s unclear if the induced pluripotent stem cells are safe to use because researchers still need to make sure they don’t cause any genetic problems or cause cells to turn into cancer. Much more induced pluripotent stem cell research needs to be done before this version of the cells can be tested in humans but each year new discoveries are being made that leads scientists to believe the future is bright with possibilities.
