Archive | 2019
Cell-Based Therapy for Neonatal Lung Diseases
Abstract
Abstract One of the most exciting discoveries of recent times is the regenerative capacity of adult stem cells. While hematopoietic stem cells were identified in the 1960s, representing the prototypic “adult stem cell,” the pace of knowledge about other bone marrow–derived stem cells as well as endogenous tissue-committed stem cells has advanced only in the past decade. New preclinical data are now emerging regarding the potential regenerative capacity of stem cells in neonatal lung diseases. Equally important is the identification of several populations of resident lung stem cells that participate in both normal lung homeostasis and repair after injury. Accumulating evidence now shows perturbation of stem cell function in preterm infants and the potential contribution to bronchopulmonary dysplasia. This biologic insight has provided significant opportunities to understanding of the role of stem cells in disease as well as repair and new therapeutic opportunities that are emerging.