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Back Where the Stem Cells Grow
 

Helping people suffering from severe burns to grow new skin – or replacing teeth which must be removed with new ones: These are the goals on which the six working groups at the University Clinic of Aachen have set their sights. The researchers are systematically searching for suitable carrier materials on which stem cells can transform best into the tissue replacements needed.

Whether skin or tooth replacement, fatty tissue or muscle, stem cells are the starting point because they can change into any cell. However, a suitable carrier material is necessary on which this development can occur. This is the starting point for the work of the six scientific groups from the different clinics of the University Clinic of Aachen, who have formed a shared platform. "We are not taking the beaten path, where individual research is done on how stem cells react to different materials – that is, to individual polymers, ceramics, or metals," says Dr. Sabine Neuß-Stein from the Institute for Pathology. She is responsible for the execution of the shared project, coordinating the collaboration of the research groups. The amazing thing, and according to Dr. Neuß-Stein unique in the world, is that 20 different carrier materials, each measuring one or two square centimeters, have been systematically brought into contact in experimental series with seven different types of stem cell (adult human, both adult and embryonic stem cells from mice) which are the precursors of skin tissue, teeth, or blood cells.

All stem cell types are examined for eight different aspects, including: Do they grow onto the material – and if yes, then how? Is the material poisonous? Do the cells die? "It is primarily important whether the stem cells multiply and whether their differentiation into the different types of tissue evolves as expected," explains Dr. Neuß-Stein. If it turns out that a material starts this differentiation without additional ingredients, then it is one of the interesting materials called "smart materials". At first, carrier materials of natural polymers capable of being broken down in the body are tested, such as collagens or hyaluronic acids, along with synthetic polymers which cannot be broken down (such as silicone). This is done in collaboration with the biomaterial specialists of the Deutschen Wollforschungsinstituts, also located in Aachen. In the future, ceramics and metals will also be examined for their interactions with stem cells. Only intensive collaboration between different scientific disciplines, like this one between biologists, chemists, biotechnologists, and physicians, can answer this type of question.

"As a result of the project, we will create a catalog which can be used to determine which combinations of stem cells and materials make sense, so that certain tissues – like skin tissue – can develop," says Dr. Sabine Neuß-Stein. This will be finished in 2008, and three years of intensive research effort will be complete, financed by the IZKF "Biomat." in Aachen (the Interdisciplinary Center for Clinical Research). Animal experiments and clinical studies will follow. "For many promising combinations, we will start with animal experiments soon," says the biologist.

Further information at: http://www.izkf.ukaachen.de/, link to "Research and Projects"

visit also http://www.stemcells.nrw.de/en/startseite.html

Source: Stem Cell Network North Rhine Westphalia