Current status and concepts of stem cell therapy.

Choi, Ook Hwan; Jang, Sung Kyoo

Review

Korean Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology 2007;50(4):569-579.
Published online April 1, 2007.

Current status and concepts of stem cell therapy.

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, Pusan National University Hospital, Busan, Korea. ohchoi@pusan.ac.kr

Abstract

In this 21st century which is considered as the era of biotechnology, the regenerative medicine emerging as an important medical science has been expected to provide hope to patients of incurable diseases, such as myriad of degenerative disease or terminal organ failure which can not be solved until recently. Because It is also thought to be a epochal alternative therapy in every medical part including cardiovascular disease, neurological disorder, hereditary disease, liver disease, endocrine disorder, bone or cartilage disease, and skin disease, many stem cell researches are conducted and many results are reported. Stem cells are at the center of this regenerative medicine. Although there is public debate because it is inevitably associated with ethical problems like destruction of embryo or risk of reproductive cloning, stem cell research generated much interest because the expected therapeutic effect and the derived economic value would be enormous. This review will describe the characteristics of stem cell and summarize the published research results recently.

Key Words: Stem cell therapy, Embryonic stem cell, Adult stem cell, Cell replacement therapy