More On Stem Cells From Fat
CBS News reports on the current state of research in regards to isolating adult stem cells from body fat. "To be sure, the research into fat-derived cells is still in very early stages and many questions remain. Katz, in fact, says he's not even convinced the cells deserve to be called stem cells, because he's not sure they really do turn into other kinds of cells when transplanted into the body. Nonetheless, he says they do show promise for being used someday to treat disease." Like previous work on adult stem cells and heart repair, there are open questions as to how this regeneration is accomplished. It does seem to work, however, and it's certainly a lot easier to harvest fat than bone marrow.
Link: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/10/02/health/main646988.shtml