Amniotic epithelial cells

Amniotic epithelial cells are a form of stem cells extracted from the placenta, and may become useful in fighting diseases and disorders of the nervous system. Artificial heart valves and working tracheas, as well as muscle, fat, bone, heart, neural and liver cells have all been engineered using amniotic stem cells. Tissues obtained from amniotic cell lines show promise for patients suffering from congenital diseases or malformations of the heart, liver, lungs, kidneys, and cerebral tissue.

Advantages over embryonic stem cells

In harvesting embryonic stem cells, a human embryo is destroyed. Many pro-life individuals associate this act with abortion and consider it immoral. Amniotic epithelial cells are harvested from the placenta, which is commonly discarded after birth. Thus their use averts the controversy about embryonic stem cells.

Unlike embryonic stem cells, amniotic stem cells have not shown a propensity for developing into teratomas and other cancer-like tumors upon injection into living tissue.

Organs engineered from amniotic epithelial cells obtained from the placenta associated with a particular person's birth would not be rejected by that person; such organs would have the same genotype as that person and thus be fully compatible with that person's immune system.

References

• Byron Spice (August 5, 2005). "Option to stem cells found". www.postgazette.com. http://www.postgazette.com/pg/05217/549236.stm. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
• "Transplantation of Tissue Cultured Human Amniotic Epithelial Cells Onto Damaged Ocular Surfaces". ClinicalTrials.gov. http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct/show/NCT00344708. Retrieved 2010-07-31. 
• Rick Weiss (Jan 8, 2007). "Scientists See Potential In Amniotic Stem Cells". The Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/07/AR2007010700674.html. Retrieved 2010-07-31.