Body's natural repair mechanisms work at warp speed in mouse study
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Posted on Jan 21, 2009, 4 p.m.
Scientists uncover techniques to boost the release of stem cells, accelerating the body's natural repair mechanisms to potentially help repair bone or heart damage more quickly.
As reported in the journal, Cell Stem Cell, researchers from Imperial College London have identified critical molecular pathways that may boost the quantity of stem cells released from bone marrow, potentially helping heal heart or bone damage faster and more completely. Initial studies found that the bone marrow of treated mice released 100 times as many stem cells – the key to regenerating tissue.
“We hope that by releasing extra stem cells, as we were able to do in mice in our study, we could potentially call up extra numbers of whichever stem cells the body needs in order to boost its ability to mend itself and accelerate the repair process,” notes Imperial College London Researcher, Dr. Sara Rankin.
News Release: Body repair ‘could be ramped up' BBC News January 9, 2009