Adult stem cells collected from human fat might be a new tool for anti-aging treatments, according to a study from researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
They published their findings in the medical research journal Stem Cells. A little background first: Fat cells called adipocytes are usually found in skin but are lost in scar formation and ageing, and the lack of these cells is why wrinkles form. To combat this, scientists have previously devised treatments that use stem cells, typically collected from different tissues in the adult human body.
But this research shows that adult stem cells collected directly from human fat, called adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs), could be more effective. Why? Because they create more proteins than researchers initially thought when preserved in their natural state, as opposed to a manipulated lab. Those proteins make them more stable and durable.
As our own Amit Patel, Coast Southwest’s Innovation & Applied Science Manager, explains it,
Stem cells are considered undifferentiated in that they can become anything. To find new transcribed proteins warrants investigation and critical review. The discovery that these specific proteins are produced at a constant rate means there could be a protective quality to why these cells remain stable given that for cell structure, for example, cholesterols are essential components for cell walls. As the concentration decreases so does the ability of the cell to remain intact.
What are some of the key benefits of ASCs?
They’re very stable.
Since ASCs produce more proteins, this gives them the ability to maintain their cellular integrity when they replicate. As Ivona Percec, MD, the study’s lead author put it, “Our study shows these cells are very robust, even when they are collected from older patients.”
Their multiplication rate stays consistent with age.
Unlike other adult human stem cells, ASCs keep replicating at the same rate during your entire life, which not only helps in developing future anti-aging treatments, but gives insight into the aging process itself.
They may provide benefits beyond anti-aging aesthetics.
Since they help your body regenerate at the cellular level, they could provide help with treatment or even prevention of age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s, arthritis and more.
