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| The Effects of Mytomycin-C on Stem Cells |
Elizabeth Hughes and Hannah Yewondwossen
Background Information
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Mitomycin-C
The purple fluid, Mitomycin-C, is an antibiotic agent derived from Streptomyces caespitosus. It selectively blocks DNA and RNA replication and protein synthesis. It is a powerful anti-tumor drug that has been shown to have powerful wound healing properties. It has been used for chemotherapy as well as other treatments for cancer. When used directly upon the live human body it can have strong side effects including hair loss, rash, diarrhoea, and in a few cases destruction of sex cells. This drug is a compound of Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, and Oxygen in the following formula: C15H18N4O5.
Stem cells
Stem cells are unique in that they have the potential to be any type of cell in the body and they can divide and grow rapidly. In this experiment, we used adult mouse stem cells. They were unspecialized cells, meaning that they have not yet become their end product (such as a heart or nerve cell). They can divide and grow until they become differentiated into a specialized state. There are four different types of stem cells: embryonic, adult, embryonic germ, and embryonic carcinoma. Adult stem cells can be found throughout the body in small quantities in every organ. These stem cells are considered to be “multipotent”, meaning that they have limited end results from differentiation. Brain stem cells may have more potential than most other adult stem cells. These cells have been noted to produce almost all of the body’s two hundred different types of cells. Adult stem cells are presently used to treat patients with lymphoma or leukaemia cancers. In the future, stem cells may be used to treat neurodegenerative diseases by replacing the needed dead neurons with healthy, new stem cells. For diseases such as Parkinson’s Disease, stem cells could potentially replace the damaged or dead neurons with viable dopamine-producing neurons. Because adult stem cells do not come from embryos, it makes more sense to do research on them as there is much less controversy surrounding their origin.
Neurons
A neuron is a cell that conducts electrochemical impulses called nerve impulses or action potentials. There are three major types of neurons: sensory, motor and interneurons. Sensory neurons transmit nerve impulses to the brain or spinal cord. Motor neurons transmit nerve impulses out of the central nervous system to the muscular or glandular tissue. Interneurons or association neurons are found exclusively within the spinal cord and brain. They are stimulated by signals reaching them from sensory neurons, other interneurons, or both.
Specialization and Differentiation
Differentiation is an irreversible process in which a stem cell becomes specialized. A specialized cell is a new cell such as a nerve or a bone cell. All specialized cells come from stem cells.*
Neurodegenerative Diseases
Neurodegenerative is a term that loosely covers a wide range of diseases that result in the loss of nerve function. Included are: Parkinson’s Disease, ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), Alzheimer’s, stroke, Huntington’s, Creutzfelt- Jakob disease, and many others. The neurodegenerative diseases are often age associated, chronic, progressive, and without known treatments. Recent investigations in medical genetics have identified specific genes for several neurodegenerative disorders and animal models have begun to be used in studies. These in turn, may lead to new, therapeutic approaches.
*Figure from: Stem Cell Information
http://stemcells.nih.gov/infoCenter/stemCellBasics.asp
Comprehensive information on modern day usage of experimental stem cells
Last updated April 20th 2004
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