
May 1, 2001
Research: Cure
Question from West Bloomfield, Michigan, USA:
Our two year old was diagnosed this week with type�1 diabetes, and my wife is five months pregnant. With all the research going on would it be a good idea to freeze the umbilical cord of the newborn? If so, would you have any leads on who does this, how it is done, etc.?
Answer:
Our stem cell expert tells me that cord tissue is not a source of stem cells, and, even if it were, they would not be the endodermal stem cells which are needed for islet cell regeneration. There is also the problem that any new islet cells might still be subject to autoimmune destruction. Just the same, this is a tantalising area of research the more so because just last week in Science there was a report of having grown islet producing stem cells in mice.
DOB