A new type of cell discovered in umbilical-cord blood promises to overcome the ethical and legal dilemmas surrounding the use of embryonic stem cells. International researchers who discovered the cells - called cord-blood-derived-embryonic-like stem cells, or CBEs - have found a way to mass produce them.

CBEs are similar to human embryonic stem cells and are likely to be available in large quantities to treat patients suffering from diseases ranging from diabetes and liver disease to multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer’s, said research leader Colin McGuckin from Kingston University in Britain.

The newfound CBEs are not quite as versatile as human embryonic stem cells, which can become virtually any type of cell in the body. However, they are far more flexible than “adult” stem cells.

“With a global birth rate of 100 million babies a year, there is a better chance of getting the right tissue type for the many patients out there waiting for stem cell therapy,” Dr McGuckin said.

“There is also far less likelihood of such cells being rejected when they are transplanted into people with liver disease, for example.”

Writing in the journal Cell Proliferation, Dr McGuckin and his colleagues say the cord-blood stem cells have many of the same characteristics as embryonic stem cells, including the ability to become liver cells, which the researchers have produced in their laboratory.

Dr McGuckin’s team used NASA-developed microgravity technology to grow cord-blood stem cells in large enough quantities to treat patients.

Team member Randall Urban of the University of Texas said plans were now in place to use the technology to “engineer” pancreatic cells, which are able to reverse juvenile diabetes.

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