Stem cells in medicine

• How can stem cells be used to treat diabetes?

  By replacing damaged pancreas cells
• What condition can stem cells potentially treat related to paralysis?

  By producing healthy nerve cells
• What are the two important features of stem cells?

  They can divide and differentiate
• What are the two main types of stem cells?

  Embryonic and adult stem cells
• Where are embryonic stem cells found?

  In the early embryo
• What can adult stem cells differentiate into?

  Different types of blood cells
• What causes type 1 diabetes?

  Damage to pancreas cells
• What are the two important features of stem cells?

  1. They can divide by mitosis to produce more cells, 2. They can differentiate into different types of specialized cells
• What are the two main types of stem cells?

  Embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells
• What is the key difference between embryonic and adult stem cells?

  Embryonic stem cells can differentiate into any type of specialized cell, while adult stem cells can only differentiate into different types of blood cells
• What are some conditions that are caused by faulty cells?

  Type 1 diabetes, paralysis, sickle cell anemia
• How can stem cells be used to treat conditions caused by faulty cells?

  Stem cells can be used to replace the faulty cells with properly working cells
• What is the typical process for using embryonic stem cells to treat a condition like diabetes?

  1. Extract embryonic stem cells from early embryos, 2. Grow them in a lab, 3. Stimulate them to differentiate into pancreas cells, 4. Inject the differentiated cells into the patient's pancreas
• What are the two main drawbacks of using embryonic stem cells?

  1. Limited supply, 2. Risk of rejection by the patient's immune system
• How can using adult stem cells help overcome the drawbacks of using embryonic stem cells?

  Adult stem cells are easy to obtain and won't cause rejection since they can be taken from the patient themselves
• What are the two potential risks involved in using stem cells for treatment?

  1. Virus transmission, 2. Tumor development
• What are the main ethical concerns around using embryonic stem cells?

  The embryos used have the potential for human life, so some people object to their use on religious or moral grounds
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of using embryonic stem cells vs. adult stem cells for medical treatments?

  Strengths of embryonic stem cells:

  • Can differentiate into any cell type
  • Unlimited supply

  
  

  Weaknesses of embryonic stem cells:

  • Ethical concerns
  • Risk of immune rejection

  
  

  Strengths of adult stem cells:

  • Avoid ethical issues
  • No risk of immune rejection

  
  

  Weaknesses of adult stem cells:

  • Limited differentiation potential
  • Limited supply
• What are the key steps in the process of using stem cells to treat a condition like diabetes or paralysis?

  Key steps:

  1. Obtain stem cells (embryonic or adult)
  2. Grow and expand the stem cells in a lab
  3. Stimulate the stem cells to differentiate into the desired cell type (e.g. pancreas cells, nerve cells)
  4. Transplant the differentiated cells into the patient to replace the faulty cells
• If you wanted to use stem cells to treat sickle cell anemia, which type of stem cells would you likely use?

  Adult stem cells
• How do the ethical concerns around using embryonic stem cells differ from using adult stem cells?

  Embryonic stem cells are obtained from human embryos, which some view as having the potential for human life, while adult stem cells can be obtained without such ethical concerns
• What are the potential risks and challenges associated with using stem cells for medical treatments?

  Potential risks and challenges:

  • Virus transmission from donor stem cells
  • Tumor development from uncontrolled stem cell growth
  • Immune rejection of transplanted stem cells
  • Ethical concerns around use of embryonic stem cells
  • Limited supply and differentiation potential of adult stem cells
• If you wanted to observe the detailed surface features of a cell, which type of microscope would you use?

  Scanning electron microscope (SEM)
• How do the functions of a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and a transmission electron microscope (TEM) differ?

  TEMs produce 2D images, while SEMs produce 3D images
• What is the formula to calculate the area of a circle with radius $r$?


  $A =$$\pi r^2$