New Study: Successful Adult Stem Cell Research

PITTSBURGH – For the first time, scientists at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC have discovered a unique population of adult stem cells derived from human muscle that could be used to treat muscle injuries and diseases such as heart attack and muscular dystrophy.

In a study using human muscle tissue, scientists in Children's Stem Cell Research Center isolated and characterized stem cells taken from blood vessels that are easily isolated using cell-sorting techniques, proliferate rapidly and can be differentiated in the laboratory into muscle, bone and cartilage cells.

These characteristics may make them ideally suited as a potential therapy for muscle injuries and diseases.

"Finding this population of stem cells in a human source represents a major breakthrough for us because it brings us much closer to a clinical application of this therapy," said Dr. Huard, the Henry J. Mankin Professor and vice chair for Research in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

Source: Children's Hospital of Pittsburg.
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