A PERSON'S organs can be used after they die, and now their stem
cells might be harvested too. Huge numbers of stem cells can be
mined from bone marrow up to five days after death and used in a
variety of life-saving treatments. Human bone marrow contains
mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), which can develop into a variety
of cell types, including bone, cartilage and fat. They can be
transplanted from one person to another, with the type of cell
they form depending on where in the body they are injected.
Cells injected into the heart, for example, can become healthy
cardiac tissue, a useful therapy for people with chronic heart
conditions. Unlike other tissue transplants, MSCs tend not to be
rejected by the recipient's immune system. In fact, MSCs appear
to pacify immune cells. This has ... To continue reading this
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