Cell therapy (also called cellular therapy or cytotherapy) is therapy in which cellular material is injected into a patient; this generally means intact, living cells. Among the trillons of cells which make up the human body, Stem Cells can be use to prevent, heal or alleviate a disease.
This video presents a short presentation of Stem Cell discovery, classfication and potential.
(Thanks to Health-e Company for this contribution).
Basic Notions :
Three basic elements of Tissue-Engineering :
- Cells : in order to heal, replace or make a tissue, we need cells. These cells will be surrounding cells and among them surrounding stem cells;
- Signals : the available cells present close to the injury or to the tissue to replace will be attracted and monitored by biological signals (provided by proteins called "growth factors" that regulate cell growth and division)
- Scaffold : a biological structure where cells can easily stick and multiply themselves.
Coagulation Cascade :
can be done through 2 pathways depending of the trauma origin :
- Intrinsic Pathway :
when trauma is caused to blood cells or exposure of blood cells to collagen, - Extrinsic Pathway :
when the origin of the trauma is a tissue trauma, then there is a release of tissue factors. - Both Pathways leads to : the transformation of Prothrombine into Thrombine which acts on Fibrinogen and leads to fibrin, which added to Factor XIII, creates the required covalent bonds for Fibrin Mesh (Fibrin gel).