Медицина/4. Терапия

B.K. Mahatov (student of group 2-071 GM), Z.M. Kakulya (senior teacher)

Karaganda State Medical University, Kazakhstan

Regeneration: laboratory researches and clinical use

In the work we want to say about the main quality of our organism. Why do we think it’s the main quality? Because it stays on the top of necessary for life abilities. Because of this ability human can restore himself after injury, fracture, burn, any type of infection diseases. Regeneration – basic process of renewalling of organism. In this way, all clinical treatment only helps, promotes to regenerative processes, what means that this is our basic mechanism of treating against every illness, our placebo, without which we wouldn’t survive after simply cold. Such high meaning of this issue attracted me to scrutiny nowadays situation in this branch of medicine.

First of all, we need to find definition of the word regeneration. As Oxford dictionary says, regeneration means the action or process of regenerating or being regenerated, in particular the formation of new animal or plant tissue.

If earlier regenerative processes were investigated only for using in therapy, today it becomes more interesting in transplantation, because it automatically decides autoaggressionproblem , which appears after transplantation of donor’s organ. Mostly, such traumatic procedures are necessary for patients with damaging of organ. Even system. The reason may be oldness, atrophy or necrosis of cells as a result of traumatic effect, owing to organ/system can’t function like it needs. As example, we can remember decline of immune reactivity at oncohematological diseases of thymus or as a result aging atrophy of this gland. In second cause, of course, we couldn’t say about any transplantation, what made issue of another ways to reestablish normal operability this system more demanded.

Nowadays science technologies allow run reestablish function and structure of some organs without invasion.

For deciding this problem is 2013 by EU countries was considered and taken to realization THYMISYSTEM program, within the confines of which decides issues of transplantation and cultivation cells of thymus. Coordination of all research works conducted by scientists of Edinburgh university. The incredible experiment was hold by them successfully not so much time ago, in which they discovered new way to reestablish thymus. A team of scientists at the University of Edinburgh has succeeded in regenerating a living organ for the first time. The advance could pave the way for new therapies for people with damaged immune systems and genetic conditions that affect thymus development.

The team reactivated a natural mechanism that shuts down with age to rejuvenate the thymus in very old mice. After treatment, the regenerated organ had a similar structure to that found in a young mouse.

The function of the thymus was also restored and the mice began making more white blood cells called T cells, which are important for fighting off infection. However, it is not yet clear whether the immune system of the mice was improved.

The study was led by researchers from the Medical Research Council Centre for Regenerative Medicine at the University of Edinburgh.

The researchers targeted a protein produced by cells of the thymus - called FOXN1 - which helps to control how important genes are switched on. By increasing levels of FOXN1, the team instructed stem cell-like cells to rebuild the organ.

“Our results suggest that targeting the same pathway in humans may improve thymus function and therefore boost immunity in elderly patients, or those with a suppressed immune system. However, before we test this in humans we need to carry out more work to make sure the process can be tightly controlled” – says Clare Blackburn, professor of Tissue Stem Cell Biology, MRC Centre for Regenerative Medicine.

The thymus deteriorates with age, which is why older people are often more susceptible to infections such as flu.

The discovery could also offer hope to patients with DiGeorge syndrome, a genetic condition that causes the thymus to not develop properly.

Dr Rob Buckle, Head of Regenerative Medicine, Medical Research Council:

“One of the key goals in regenerative medicine is harnessing the body’s own repair mechanisms and manipulating these in a controlled way to treat disease. This interesting study suggests that organ regeneration in a mammal can be directed by manipulation of a single protein, which is likely to have broad implications for other areas of regenerative biology.”

So, today we can believe, that tomorrow cure for the number of diseases will be our own organism, that we’ll can reestablish not every, but most of destroyed organs. As for me, this experiment found new ways for clinical treating. Furthermore, it can helps people who hope to be restored after injury, because this discovery open the gates not only in regenerative medicine, but in science at all. There is a difference between regenerative medicine and regenerative science. Through regenerative medicine – tissue engineering and cell therapy applied to aid the organ regeneration process – scientists attempt to grow and regenerate tissues and organs in laboratories, aiming for future, safe implantation.

In resolution I want to notice that this investigation is good, but not perfect because of some negative points, among them are very high costly treatment, prolonged of the procedure, and it may be not useful in some clinical situations. But I hope that these problems will be salve in the nearest time.