Sources for adult stem cells from somatic tissues: bone marrow, blood, skin, fat, muscle, liver, brain, cornea, retina, pancreas, and lining of gastrointestinal tract. Are these multi- or pluripotent?
It depends on who is giving the definition. Multipotent usually refers to multiple cell lineages within a specific organ site (e.g., bone marrow and blood) from what may be referred to as a progenitor cell, whereas pluripotent usually means that “unrelated” cells like nerve cells and blood cells can come from the same stem cell. As we learn more about cell growth, differntiation, manipulation, etc. these definitions can become blurred. What also is still not clear are the cell-associated markers that define what is an omnipotent, pluripotent, multipotent or progenitor cell from the various organ sites and what is universally or specifically applicable, if anything, to regulatory growth controls of specific cell types, tissues, or organ sites.
Related Questions
- Sources for adult stem cells from somatic tissues: bone marrow, blood, skin, fat, muscle, liver, brain, cornea, retina, pancreas, and lining of gastrointestinal tract. Are these multi- or pluripotent?
- What is the difference between stem cells derived from umbilical cord blood and those derived from bone marrow and fat tissue?
- What is the difference between cord blood stem cells, embryonic stem cells, and bone marrow stem cells?
