A team of scientists from the UNC School of Medicine and North Carolina State University (NCSU), U.S. have developed promising research towards possible stem cell treatment for several lung conditions, such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and cystic fibrosis, all of which are known to be fatal conditions. In the journal Respiratory Research , the scientists demonstrated that they could harvest lung stem cells from people using a relatively non-invasive, doctor’s office technique. They were then able to multiply the harvested lung cells in the lab to yield enough cells sufficient for human therapy.
In a second study, published in the journal Stem Cells Translational Medicine , the team showed that in rodents they could use the same type of lung cell to successfully treat a model of IPF — a chronic, irreversible, and ultimately fatal disease characterised by a progressive decline in lung function. These diseases of the lung involve the build-up of fibrous, scar-like tissue, typically due to chronic lung inflammation. As this fibrous tissue replaces working lung tissue, the lungs become less able to transfer oxygen to the blood. Patients ultimately are at risk of early death from respiratory failure. In the case of IPF, which has been linked to smoking, most patients live for fewer than five years after diagnosis.
