Adult Stem Cells

The primary role of adult stem cells in humans is to maintain and repair the tissue in which they are found. While we call them adult stem cells, they are more accurately called somatic (from the Greek word soma = body) stem cells, because they come from not only adults, but other sources.

Adult type stem cells come from:

• Umbilical Cords, Placentas and Amniotic Fluid—Adult type stem cells can be derived from various pregnancy-related tissues.

• Adult Tissues—In adults, stem cells are present within various tissues and organ systems. These include the bone marrow, liver, epidermis, retina, skeletal muscle, intestine, brain, dental pulp, and elsewhere. Even fat obtained from liposuction has been shown to contain significant numbers of adult type stem cells.

• Cadavers—Neural stem cells have been removed from specific areas in post-mortem human brains as late as 20 hours following death.