Stem Cells Found In Degenerating Spinal Discs

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Stem Cells Found In Degenerating Spinal Discs

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/87523.php

Orthopedic researchers at Jefferson Medical College have for the

first time found stem cells in the intervertebral discs of the human

spine, suggesting that such cells might someday be used to help

repair degenerating discs and remedy lower back and neck pain.

Reporting November 1, 2007 in the journal Spine, a team led by

Makarand Risbud, Ph.D., and Irving Shapiro, Ph.D., at Jefferson

Medical College of Jefferson University in Philadelphia, have

found stem cells in both degenerated adult human discs and in discs

of animals.

Many people suffer from lower back pain, and treatment ranges from

painkillers such as acetominophen to medical procedures, such as

fusing vertebrae. The combined annual costs for treatment of back

pain and disc disease is approximately $100 billion a year and a

major cause of lost work in the United States.

According to Dr. Shapiro, as the discs in the spine degenerate,

cells are lost and the ability to produce water-binding molecules

called proteoglycans is decreased. The water absorbs forces on the

spine, essentially serving as shock absorbers. Losing proteoglycans

can result in damage to the disc, and sometimes, pain.

" It would be wonderful if we could get the cells in the

intervertebral disc to regenerate or increase the amount of

proteoglycans that they synthesize, " he says. " That way we could

regenerate the shock-absorbing capabilities of the spine. "

Dr. Risbud, an assistant professor of Orthopedic Surgery, and Dr.

Shapiro, who is professor of Orthopedic Surgery, both at Jefferson

Medical College, and their co-workers asked if it was possible to

regenerate proteoglycans using adult stem cells. Federal regulations

prevent them from using embryonic stem cells.

Dr. Risbud built the study around the observation that while the

tissue that he could isolate from the disc was no longer binding

water, the tissue still might contain dormant stem cells. He thought

that while these cells were no longer functioning to repair the

damaged disc, under appropriate conditions, they could be activated.

To explore that possibility, he isolated cells from discarded disc

tissue that still had the capacity to proliferate. Dr. Risbud notes

that under certain conditions, the cells could be encouraged to form

bone. In other conditions, the cells would form cartilage or even

fat. The tests proved that these cells were indeed dormant disc stem

cells. " If we are able to stimulate the 'silent' cells in the

patient, then it may be possible to repair the ravages of

degenerative disc disease without undergoing invasive surgical

procedures that may limit the motion of the spine, " he says.

According to Dr. Risbud, in earlier work, the researchers found that

local conditions in the disc can promote adult stem cells of the

bone marrow to acquire characteristics of disc cells. Within the

disc, the local conditions are unique in that the oxygen levels are

low. These conditions cause the expression of many specialized

molecules, including the water-binding proteoglycans. Some of the

researchers' current experiments focus on the use of adult stem

cells to repair the degenerate intervertebral disc.

Shapiro notes that other researchers have taken bone marrow stem

cells and have made new bone, cartilage and fat tissue. " Our next

step is to activate these disc stem cells and get them to repopulate

the disc and make proteoglycans and restore the water-binding,

The scientists theorize that because the stem cells exist in the

degenerate disk, there may be molecules that are blocking stem cell

activity. " Something is inhibiting the disc repair process, " says

Dr. Shapiro. Drs. Shapiro and Risbud agree that " new studies are

needed to discover the nature of such inhibitory molecules " and to

find ways to block their activities, promoting natural healing.