 "Photo: Allyson Riggs")
 "Photo: Allyson Riggs")
As the Bush administration fades away into the past, so too does its influences on medical research. Recently, the Obama administration lifted restrictions on stem cell research. HSU students who are involved in the research of stem cell applications may see an increase in funding and government support.
After Proposition 71 (California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act) passed, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) enabled a $1.6 million grant for programs related to stem cell research for HSU students. HSU has provided students the opportunity to work at UC San Francisco or Stanford for a year to get their training with tissue samples.
In a press release distributed by the National Institute of Health, NIH Director Francis Collins announced further involvement in stem cell research. The NIH approves of 13 human Embryonic Stem Cell (hESC) lines for use in research under the NIH Guidelines for Human Stem Cell Research adopted in July 2009. NIH-supported researchers hope that the cells may be used to treat diseases and disabilities such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. The research also includes the use of hESCs for regeneration of damaged tissues or heart muscle cells.
HSU biology student Peter Din works on the embryonic fibroblast cells of farming mice. This type of cell can transform into and clone any other type of cell - like a wild card in poker that can be used to regenerate tissue in mice. The same work can be applied to human cells to help with surgical recovery. Din added that current cell research originated in studying tumors after it was discovered that a tumor has the ability to produce its own cells which produce hair and teeth.
The NIH press release indicates that research in hESCs already yields information about what occurs during human development. This means that researchers will be able to better anticipate how the stem cells will react in the body if applied for medical use.
Stem cell use still has its own flaws said Din. “There is a potential that the adult stem cells can revert back into a cancerous tumor,” he said. Also, cysts can develop in the area where stem cells are placed to help with healing.
When people think of stem cell research, they assume it is the controversial topic of embryonic stem cells. Biology Professor Jacob Varkey explained that HSU’s research deals with handling different forms of cells which replicate tissue regeneration. Simply put, a person’s own genetically-unique cells are used to make cultures that can create fleshy, skin-like films which would work similarly to skin-graphs.
This is significant in its application for patients in need of transplants. Since the cultures are made from one’s own or similar cells, the patient’s body does not reject the transplant as a “foreign object,” insuring that the replicated tissue is accepted by the immune system. Varkey believes that the future of medicine will utilize regenerative medicine; an industry that will need trained personnel.
Biological Sciences Professor Amy Sprowles, who lectures on genetics, added that the grant will also provide general education courses in stem cell research biology for the public with a possible ethics course.“The field is more advanced than people know,” said Sprowles. Potential application of regenerative medicines, which starts with stem cell research, includes neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s disease. It could also help diabetics to produce their own insulin.
But Sprowles also added that a lot of research is still in the early stages. Back in Sept. of this year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave the bio-therapeutics company Neuralstem, Inc. the go ahead to test on 12 humans with Lou Gehrig’s Disease, a disease that weakens your muscles to the point you can’t breathe or swallow.
There is both support and opposition revolving around ethical issues, but it is noted that because of this advancement the U.S. can now compete against the U.K. in this field of research. HSU’s stem cell research project is not only scientific, it is business-minded. “We need economic stimulation,” said HSU’s President Rollin Richmond. And HSU will aid the progress of those who will further the field of stem cell research.
Richmond stressed that the $1.6 million in grants goes to student funding and provides an advantage for students where a high demand for stem cell research exists. “California has the strongest groups in this area of therapy,” said Richmond.
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