Study: Fat May Be Stem Cells Source

By ANDREW BRIDGES, The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) A team of scientists says it has grown everything from human muscle to bone from stem cells taken from fat - a breakthrough that could eliminate the controversial use of fetal cells in the quest to mend damaged tissue. Researchers isolated the stem cells from ordinary fat removed by liposuction. They then grew the cells into bone, cartilage, muscle and fat. Eventually, scientists hope to use a patient's own fat to supply the tissue required to treat disease or repair injuries.

The discovery comes at a time when President Bush has signaled he may block federal funding for studies that use embryonic or fetal cells. He want scientists to focus on adult stem cells, which until now have been more difficult to harvest. Scientists look to stem cell research and its promise as a potential cur for Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, cancer, Parkinson's disease, heart disease and spinal cord injuries.

AP-NY-04010-01 1331 EDT Copyright 2001

Human fat may provide useful cells:

By Rick Weiss, THE WASHINGTON POST
(as seen on msnbc.com/news)

WASHINGTON, April 10. Scientists for the first time have transformed human fat into a variety of different tissue types, suggesting the much reviled substance may be an unexpected source of cells useful for the treatment of a wide range of ills. The greasy yellow substance extracted by liposuction from patient' hips and thighs, the researchers also turned fat into healthy cartilage, muscle and bone cells.

Indeed, scientists said , given its abundance, accessibility and apparent versatility, human fat may someday gain respect as a premier biological building material, with uses ranging from wrinkle filling and breast augmentation to major bone, joint and muscle repairs.

"We usually think about fat as sort of worthless, something that everyone just want to get rid of an throw away," said Marc H. Hedrick of the University of California-Los Angeles School of Medicine, woe let the new research with Adam J. Katz of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. "This work makes us think much differently about fat tissue." But ultimately, (Drs.) Hedrick and Katz said, it doesn't matter where the cells are coming from. The point is that fat from liposuction contains cells from which many useful tissues can be grown. And fat is a lot easier to remove than bone marrow.

If fat cell so live up to their potential, the first applications will probably be for space-filling jobs, such as plumping up wrinkles or enlarging breasts with newborn fat cells, Hedrick said. Injections of young fat cells derived from stem cells should work better than today's transplants of mature fat, since old cells often die and collapse after transfer, creating imperfect Cosmetic results.

Copyright 2001 The Washington Post Company