Regenerative medicine for degenerative diseases

Abstract

In recent years regenerative biology has reached to greater heights due to its therapeutic potential in treating degenerative diseases; as they are not curable by modern medicine. With the advent of research in stem cells and developmental biology the regenerative potential of adult resident stem cells is becoming clearer. The long term objective of regenerative medicine or cell therapy is to treat patients with their own stem cells. These stem cells could be derived from the diseased organs such as skin, liver, pancreas etc. or from reservoirs of multipotent stem cells such as bone marrow or cord blood. The existence of the stem cells in most organs including brain has been established. Harnessing the potential of these resident 'in-house' stem cells is highly attractive as it has bearing in autologous cell therapy to cure many diseases such as arthritis, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease etc. The present article focuses on the importance of regenerative medicine in neuronal and cardiac disorders and diabetes highlighting the latest developments in the field.