Stem cells derived from amniotic fluid and chorionic villi are fetal stem cells useful for potential therapeutic applications in regenerative medicine, cell therapy and for a number of human diseases under current medical investigation, as well as for other debilitating conditions such as severe traumatic injuries or reconstruction of osteoarticular cartilage and bone tissues.

We certainly need to be wary of who claims miraculous therapies in human, but still the emerging scientific consensus raises hopes for therapeutic interventions that may become a reality. Stem cells from amniotic fluid and chorionic villi are different and unique as compared to other stem cells: they are able to divide many times, are genetically stable and have a high differentiation potential which allows them to give rise to several different cell lines as for the bone tissue, muscle, nerve, cartilage and blood.

PROLIFERATION CAPACITY
Stem cells are immature cells that can divide giving rise to daughter cells identical to the mother one, thus providing a potentially inexhaustible source of cells able to build, renew and repair damaged organs and tissues. It is important that the proliferative capacity of the stem cells is adequate and remains preserved during collection and preservation, in order to allow rapid cell expansion in sufficient number for therapeutic purposes. Data from the recent literature now come together in highlighting the high proliferation characteristics of fetal stem cells from amniotic fluid and chorionic villi.

GENOMIC STABILITY
Given their high ability of proliferation and self-renewal, stem cells may be susceptible of genomic damage that may in some cases result in an increased risk of neoplastic transformation. For this reason, stem cells of different origin must be subjected in advance to in-depth genetic investigations that verify their genomic stability before as well as after culturing. Evidence of literature indicate that stem cells from amniotic fluid and chorionic villi have a high genomic stability, even after prolonged maintenance in culture.

DIFFERENTIATION POTENTIAL
Stem cells are undifferentiated cells that, in addition to the capacity of dividing and proliferating, still maintain the properties of differentiating in specialized cells, so giving rise to all mature cell types of the human body. Stem cells are also found in some adult tissues, but their abundance is drastically reduced after birth, and their ability to differentiate is also limited to restricted or even specific cellular fates. Unlike adult stem cells, the differentiative capacity of fetal stem cells derived from amniotic fluid and chorionic villi is more plastic, and they are able to give rise to a much higher number of tissues, such as: bone, cartilage, muscle, myocardium, neurons, pancreatic islets, liver, etc.

THERAPEUTIC POTENTIALS
Stem cells can be used in medicine for prevention and treatment of many diseases of immune nature, degenerative or traumatic, as well as for the treatment of congenital defects. The diseases that currently use stem cells as therapeutic sources (as autologous grafts or from other donor) include, in addition to a range of tumors (such as myelomas, leukemias and lymphomas), degenerative diseases such as diabetes, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s, ALS and many other diseases. The use of fetal stem cells from amniotic fluid and chorionic villi has been similarly suggested for the treatment of these pathologies, and their use is considered particularly promising in the field of regenerative medicine for the repair and reconstruction of heart valves, trachea tracts, diaphragm, and bone and cartilaginous tissues. Several studies now show that these cells possess a biological profile similar to the mesenchymal stem cells derived from the bone marrow. Amniotic and placental-derived stem cells, for example, have been suggested for a potential use in cell therapy of diabetes, vascular diseases, as well as for the regeneration of skeletal muscle and osteo-cartilaginous tissues.

BIOCELL CONTRIBUTIONS

Biocell Center has carried out research on stem cells derived from both amniotic fluid and chorionic villi, and below are listed the references of some of these studies: