Stem cell therapies
neurotrophins, proteins that supports the growth of neurones and survival and development of nerves, respectively. These factors led to reduced cognitive impairment and enhanced synaptic density. Replicating these results in human trials and understanding this mechanism will enable stem cell therapies to potentially treat dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases.
Potential of stem cell therapies
I firmly believe that regenerative medicine, especially stem cells, will produce enhanced quality of care and patient treatment. Despite the field only experiencing 20 years of research, regenerative medicine has reaped impressive therapies that are superior to the current medical practices. This has been exemplified in the case study of orthopaedics, where, combined with tissue engineering, stem cells have provided a therapy to heal hip injuries. Not only is this an alternative, but transplanting stem cells into a scaffold at the site on tissue trauma yields superior mobility and reduced recovery times than traditional hip repairs. Furthermore, this technique can also be used to heal tendons and ligaments throughout the musculoskeletal system. Thus, this case study demonstrates how stem cell therapies have already improved current methods of treating mechanical injuries. Moreover, the case study of exosomes showcases the utility of stem cell therapies in drug-related treatments. While liposomes have properties adapted for drug delivery, the biochemical application of stem cells has provided an alternative option in the form of exosomes. Due to their properties and biological function, exosomes are more effective transport vehicles, resulting in exosomes being safer. Beyond this, stem cell exosomes can also be used for pathological screening, an additional function that is not shared with liposomes. Through this case study, we have observed that stem cell therapies can provide alternatives to newly developed treatments. Though exosomes might not be used in mass vaccination programmes, they nonetheless show potential in localized drug administration and screening for disease. The final case study of neurodegenerative disease illustrates the potential of stem cell therapies. Regenerative medicine aims to develop treatment plans that will treat the condition itself, rather than managing the symptoms of a disease, as is the case for many current medical practices. The treatment of neurodegenerative diseases embodies this concept. Despite the prevalence of dementia in a significant proportion of the senior population, no therapies treat this condition; only symptom management protocols exist. However, stem cells offer great promise in tackling neuronal degeneration, as highlighted in the Alzheimer’s mice trials. Moving forward, the results of improved memory consolidation and increased synaptic density will be investigated and hopefully this success can be replicated in human trials. Consequently, stem cell therapies show great potential in curing dementia, where current medical practices have failed. I believe that these three case studies have accurately conveyed the potential of stem cells in providing alternative treatments to current medical practices. Each case study reviews different specialized fields of medicine, suggesting that stem cell therapies have a vast range of applications. Additionally, in these case studies, I have evaluated that the investigated stem cell therapy is more effective in treating the condition than current medical practices. With many conditions having treatments whose quality of
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