Bioprocess development for the large scale production and differentiation of mammalian adult stem cells

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The human body is composed of about 200 different types of specialized cells. These specialized cell types combine in different proportions to form the various tissues found in organs such as the brain, heart, skin, liver and pancreas. Adult mammalian tissues are also known to contain a sparse population of stem cells. The role of these adult stem cells is to maintain the tissue in which they reside by replacing cells which die due to normal wear and tear, or injury. This awesome ability to regenerate any of the numerous specialized cell types found in a given tissue has lead to a rapid increase in the amount of research aimed at developing stem cell applications. Adult stem cells could be used to better understand normal development, test new pharmaceuticals, learn about aging, and develop new therapies which could improve the health and wellbeing of Canadians. However, the development of stem cell applications requires researchers to have access to an adequate supply of stem cells. Unfortunately, due to their sparse nature in adult tissues, stem cells can only be procured in very small quantities, thereby significantly hampering research efforts.