New research shows limitless supply of stem cells from body fat

Limitless Supply of Stem Cells Come From Body Fat
Source:   Reuters Health; October 18, 2000
New York, NY — In the midst of the debate over whether stem cells should be harvested from embryos, researchers have found what could be a “limitless” stem-cell supply–the ever-growing fat deposits of the human body.  Most importantly for the pro-life community, this could provide an ethical pro-research alternative to killing unborn children as a means to obtain stem cells for research.

In cell culture experiments, investigators found they could coax primitive fat cells to grow into bone cells, suggesting that fat could someday provide stem cells that can develop into a range of body tissue. The sheer abundance of human fat makes this approach particularly attractive, according to researchers at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Dr. Louis P. Bucky and colleagues presented their work Tuesday in Los Angeles at a meeting of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

Bucky told Reuters Health that the “beauty of fat” is that there is a lot of it and it is easy to get at, unlike stem cells from bone marrow.  “This is a potentially unlimited source of cells to turn into mature cells of different types,” Bucky said.

Bucky’s team used stem cells harvested from abdominal fat in their experiments. By exposing the cells to growth factors that promote bone development, the researchers were able to create bone cells. If further research shows fat stem cells can actually become bone, they could be used to treat all types of bone defects and injuries, according to Bucky. He noted that other researchers are currently looking at whether fat stem cells can form muscle.

Such research could also give a purpose to fat left over from liposuction. In another study reported on at the meeting, scientists grew cartilage cells from fat stem cells taken from liposuction samples. Dr. Prosper Benhaim of the University of California at Los Angeles led that study.  “In the future, liposuction may provide an abundant source of stem cells that are easily obtained,” Benhaim noted.