Stem Cells: Without all the Controversy

By P.J. Calvin, MD

Stem Cells: Without all the Controversy

Discover the latest in Stem Cell Health and Nutrition

Stem cells are like the exotic, mysterious neighbors that move in next door and have the whole street talking – but not always agreeing.

Stem cells are linked in many people's minds to the controversial topic of embryonic research and Bush-era politics because that's when America really started talking about the amazing potential locked inside stem cells.

How far we've come.

Today, we know that anyone can benefit from the healing power of stem cells because, as it turns out, that exotic, controversial neighbor has been living right next door all along – and quietly and effectively doing undercover repair work – without us even knowing.

Stem cells act as the body's own renewal system, actually becoming just like any of the damaged cells in the body and then replacing them.

"Everybody has stem cells; everybody uses stem cells; everybody uses stem cells every day; stem cells work…and they work every time."

It sums up the beautiful simplicity and sophistication of stem cells at work, naturally.

"We now understand that stem cells constantly leave the bone marrow, circulate in the blood stream and migrate into any tissue in need, where they then increase in number and actually become cells of that particular tissue."

And now there is a way to increase the volume and speed at which our own bodies release our very own stem cells to do their tailor-made work for our own health and wellness.  Read this incredible book to learn more.

• Language: English
• Publisher: The Natural Wellness Group
• Release date: Mar 30, 2020
• ISBN: 9781927961148

Book preview

Discover the latest in Stem Cell Health & Nutrition

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P.J. Calvin, MD

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Only man is not content to leave things as they are but must always be changing them, and when he has done so, is seldom satisfied with the result.

– Elopeth Huxley, British author

STEM CELLS:

Without all the Controversy

Discover the latest in Stem Cell Health & Nutrition

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P.J. Calvin, MD

Disclaimer

This book is designed to provide general information to the public at large.  Nothing herein is intended to advise or encourage the reader to practice any form of self-diagnosis or treatment.  Medical problems should always be addressed by competent healthcare professionals on an individual basis.  Therefore, this is not intended as a medical prescription for anyone or for anything.  It is not even recommended as a first point of reference.  Nutritional and health needs do vary from person to person, depending on such factors as age, sex, medical history, health status and total lifestyle.

None of the statements in this book have been reviewed by the US Food and Drug Administration or by Health Canada.

Preface

The stem cell revolution is here.  Everybody knows that or at least hopes it’s true. But who also knows that nutrition – and supplementation, in particular – can play a critical role, especially for those wise individuals whose focus is on prevention and the maintenance of good health and wellness.  This book will demonstrate that surprising truth.

Indeed, with all the media focus and hype on the possibilities of regenerative medicine and potential relief for many who suffer with chronic and sometimes debilitating conditions, the public has been given exaggerated and somewhat unrealistic expectations.  At best, such major breakthroughs are most likely decades away from any widespread application.  At the same time, we have overlooked a much more pertinent development in our understanding of the role of adult stem cells in normal human physiology.

We now understand that stem cells constantly leave the bone marrow, circulate in the bloodstream and migrate into any tissue in need, where they then proliferate and differentiate to become cells of that particular tissue.  This constitutes the normal renewal system of the body.  In this book, we will phrase this reality in a convenient 5-point mantra: Everybody has stem cells; everybody uses stem cells; everybody uses stem cells every day; stem cells work ... and they work every time.  That’s an amazing assertion with far-reaching implications and therefore, it is worthy of frequent repetition.

The second breakthrough discovery to be elucidated in this book is that certain natural products can enhance this normal stem cell renewal process.  That defines Stem Cell Nutrition.  Careful published research has demonstrated that L-selectin blockers found in specific micro-algae and seaweed – namely, aphanizomenon flos-aquae and undaria pinnatifida – do enhance the release of adult stem cells from the bone marrow.  Other natural products complement these algae to provide support for the circulation of the stem cells and their migration into tissues in need.  This book will describe these amazing developments in detail.

Preamble

Thirty years ago, stem cells were understood to be either (i) germ cells – male spermatozoa (sperm) and female oocytes (eggs) that combine in normal reproduction to produce entirely new, complete and independent offspring; (ii) simply undifferentiated progenitor cells that give rise  to the various types of cells found in  blood, bone and the lining of the gastrointestinal tract,  or else, (iii) primitive (tissue) cells, suspended in their normal cycle but capable of proliferating when triggered to replace tissues on demand, such as in the liver, skin and endocrine organs.

Classic Histology textbooks at the time devoted very limited space to the discussion of stem cells per se and their role or importance in the maintenance of homeostasis. There was no mention of their value to normal organ or tissue renewal and the promotion of health and resilience on a daily basis.  The prevailing dogma was that cells multiply (proliferate) and become more specialized (differentiated), but one process was usually at the expense of the other.  It was believed that highly specialized cells, like nerve and muscle cells, did not multiply once they had matured.  These tissues were therefore not being renewed, period.

Let’s be more precise.  The classic example is the adult central nervous system (CNS).  Thirty years ago, all neurologists had bought into an idea attributed much earlier to the prominent histologist Ramon y Cajal (the Nobel Prize winner for Medicine, 1906):

"Once the development was ended, the founts of growth and regeneration of the axons and dendrites (in other words ‘nerves’) dried up irrevocably.  In the adult centers, the nerve paths are something fixed, ended and immutable.  Everything may die, nothing may be regenerated.  It is for the science of the future to change, if possible, this harsh decree." (1)

To put it simply, the doctrinaire position was that nerve cells did not –even could not – proliferate in the brain or spinal cord after birth.  Just imagine how this misconception impeded progress in understanding and treating neurological diseases for decades.  As we will see later, the truth is that neural stem cells do exist in the adult brain. In fact, the formation of new nerve cells has been repeatedly demonstrated and is now the basis of active research into treating diseases of the central nervous system.

But back to the eighties, where the focus was on blood cells, and the variety of cell types that were found to be derived from hematopoietic (blood forming) stem cells.  It had been recognized that these cells from the bone marrow remain poorly differentiated but are capable of extensive proliferation, persisting through life as a potential source of all the differentiated cells in peripheral blood. They also renew themselves so that their supply does not rapidly diminish.

The only practical application in those days – and it now seems so long ago – was the fairly common medical practice of bone marrow transplantation.  This was a proven approach for treating some cancer patients.  The standard use of radiation and/or chemotherapy destroyed unwanted cancer cells but also destroyed valuable blood cells and their stem cell precursors.  So, prior to such harsh therapy, patients could be injected with drugs known to stimulate the release of stem cells from the bone marrow. Those blood stem cells could then be specifically tagged, isolated and later re-injected to restore the blood cell populations after radiation or chemotherapy.

Stem cells could also be extracted directly from the bone marrow in a large bone of a potential donor (typically from the pelvis), usually under general anesthesia.  For small children, stem cells derived from umbilical cord blood has also been used.  These treatments have not been without potential complications and therefore, they have generally been reserved for more serious and even life-threatening diseases.

Now fast forward thirty years and the whole western world is abuzz with the miraculous prospects of stem cell applications.  Today the media hype has stimulated public imagination to the extent that what was until recently nothing more than science fiction, has now become desperate hope and unrealistic expectation.  Ordinary people dream of a new era of medicine in which deadly diseases will be cured with custom-made tissues and organs derived from wonder-working stem cells.  If we could remove all limitations, put any ethical considerations aside and leave the researchers to exploit these new stem cell capabilities – so we are urged to believe – then we could soon find an elixir of regenerative medicine ... ‘the holy grail of modern biology.’

There is no doubt that a revolution is indeed underway.  Hundreds, if not thousands of research laboratories around the world are spending billions of dollars each year, rapidly advancing our growing understanding of the stem cell phenomenon and its applications.  No wonder the Committee in Stockholm has awarded two Nobel prizes for Physiology or Medicine in this very field within the past few years.

In 2007 the prize went to Mario Capecchi, Martin Evans and Oliver Smithies for their work on embryonic stem cells from mice, using gene targeting strategies to produce genetically engineered mice (known as ‘knockout mice’) for gene research.

Just five years later, in 2012, the prize was awarded to Shinya Yamanaha and John B. Gurdon for their ground breaking discoveries that cells in the body can be reprogrammed into completely different kinds.  Their work reflected the mechanism behind animal cloning and offers a realistic alternative to using embryonic stem cells.

Professor Gurdon was able to show fifty years ago that cells, even when differentiated and specialized, retain their entire genetic make-up.  In other words, all cells in the body carry the same genetic information.  That may seem simple or apparent today but fifty years ago, that was a rather uncertain question and something very difficult to prove.  Gurdon proved this point by using already specialized skin or intestinal cells from tadpoles to clone more tadpoles.  Eventually, and building on Dr Gurdon’s work, other researchers were able to clone whole animals, with Dolly the famous sheep being the prime example.

Dr. Yamanaha further revolutionized our understanding of how cells and organisms develop.  In 2006, he used a relatively simple recipe to control just a few specific genes and turned mouse skin cells back into primitive cells which could then be modified to differentiate into various kinds of mature cells.(2)

In principle, these are indeed revolutionary discoveries.  Cloning animals and reprogramming stem cells is mind boggling.  If stem cells do develop into tissues like skin, bone, blood, nerves,  muscles and so on, and if such primitive cells can be generated and controlled, ostensibly by human ingenuity, then in theory, we could renew, repair and rebuild parts of the body that become damaged, malfunction or just simply wear out.  That’s the inviting prospect of a new era in medical intervention and cure.

But ... no so fast.  Miracle cures are not just around the corner.

Despite all the billions of research dollars, private and public, and despite all the media fanfare and political posturing, the evidence of practical stem cell therapies to date is still very limited.  Even the International Society for Stem Cell Research has advocated modest caution.  They are quick to point out that while there are hundreds of conditions that can purportedly be treated with stem cells, the treatments that have been shown to be beneficial are extremely limited.(³)Much progress has been realized in research laboratories, but successes in the world of clinical medicine have been few and far between. 

That’s the evasive nature of science and at the same time, the elusive science of nature.  To show great promise is rather very exciting but to experience slow progress is always more sobering. Yet we should continue to dream of the revolutionary possibilities that the exploitation of stem cell science affords.  But while we pursue these slow and costly research endeavors, we ought not to be blinded to another reality that awaits the open mind.  Just perhaps, in nature itself, we may find a simple solution to some of these challenges.  Could it be that just as food preceded medicine, so Stem Cell Nutrition can precede Stem Cell Medicine?  Or, to put it in other words, could it just be that in the area of stem cell applications, the effect of nutraceuticals might be realized long before the anticipated breakthroughs in pharmaceuticals and other types of therapeutics?

That is what we hope to demonstrate in this book.  We shall describe how natural, plant-based food sources can enhance the release and support the movement of innate adult stem cells from human bone marrow, through the bloodstream and into tissue.  We shall explore the value of increasing such stem cell trafficking – not in the future, but here and now. We shall underscore a common solution for ordinary people to experience extraordinary health benefits and a resurgence of wellness beyond their wildest expectations.

Chapter 1

Stem Cells Basic Properties 

The human body is the masterpiece of all creation... and what a masterpiece it really is!  Not only is it comprised of an estimated 50 – 100 trillion individual cells, but each and every cell is a wonder of wonders!  I often say to myself:  "Let the astronomers and cosmologists probe the dark eons of space and time, beholding galaxies and super galaxies comprised of unknown and perhaps inanimate forms of normal matter, dark matter and even anti- matter.  Let them speculate on the origins and destiny of these oscillating enigmas in the universe.  But I would rather choose to gaze in awe at a single human cell right before my very eyes beneath a microscope, in a test tube or even better yet, in a living, breathing organism."

These tiny cells perform zillions of highly complex and intricate but extremely efficient chemical reactions each and every second.  They constantly interact with their complicated and changing micro-environments while at the same time maintaining individual homeostasis. They go about their many complex duties with absolute precision and in some cases, reproduce after their own kind.

Most cells assume a very specialized role in the context of a well harmonized body and are said to be particularly differentiated for specific characteristics.  For example, blood cells carry life-giving oxygen and deliver it on demand throughout the body;  immune cells coordinate a defensive system that makes for normal and specific immunity against invading pathogens of all kinds;  skin cells provide a barrier to the environment, adjust for fluid balance when necessary and help regulate body temperature; gastrointestinal cells are uniquely fitted to aid digestion and controlled absorption of nutrients from food; liver cells are highly specialized chemical factories for metabolism of nutrients and neutralization of toxins and drugs.  We could go on to elucidate about two hundred different types of cells that all work in absolute harmony for the maintenance of good health and growth.

We now understand that of the trillions of cells in the human body, about 1.5 trillion reside in the bone marrow.  Of these, about 150 million have unique properties that allow them to be characterized as stem cells.  Although that term was first used in 1909 by a Russian histologist, Alexander Maksimov (1), many decades went by before the physiological reality and its implications would get the acceptance and research attention that they deserved.

But in the early sixties, Canadian researchers James Till and Ernest McCulloch were the first to prove unequivocally that bone marrow contained stem cells (2).  They initially exposed mice to high doses of radiation that completely killed their blood- and immune-forming systems.  Then they injected some of these mice with normal bone marrow cells.  The result was that only the mice that received the transplants survived; the mice that did not, died.  In effect, the new bone marrow cells that were injected rebuilt the blood- and immune-forming systems of the former group of irradiated mice.  This phenomenon later became the basis for clinical bone marrow transplantation in humans which was alluded to earlier.

More than twenty years later, researchers learned how to extract the inner cells from mouse blastocyst – the hollow ball of cells that forms within a few days following the fertilization of an egg cell (3).  They were then able to grow them in vitro, (that is, working in the laboratory - in this case, in a Petri dish with special suspense media).  These cultures gave rise to cells that reproduced themselves (by proliferation), but they did not adopt any characteristics of specialized cells (no differentiation) until they were exposed to appropriate biochemical signals (4).

So by 1998, the revolution was well underway after the team of researchers led by James Thomson, a soft-spoken scientist at the University of Wisconsin, Madison reported that they had succeeded in removing cells from spare human embryos which were obtained from fertility clinics, to establish the world’s first human embryonic stem cell line (3).  It did not take long before promises were being made regarding the use of similar human embryonic stem cell lines to treat many degenerative diseases and to provide hopeful cures for devastating and debilitating conditions that have an otherwise poor prognosis.  Thus, a new era in medical therapeutics had dawned.  It was only a matter of time before we could possibly learn to repair and restore both tissue and function, by design and on demand.

As simple as that, a sensational phenomenon had begun, but not without controversy, for at the center of the watershed development was a human embryo.  That initial ethical dilemma with all its moral, religious and political considerations, quickly overshadowed the promising developments taking place rather more quietly with adult stem cells.

Now, therefore, we must define some terms of reference.

Even a most basic introduction to stem cells would constitute a book by itself. Our explicit purpose here is to elucidate the current state of Stem Cell Nutrition, so we must be very selective in covering just the essentials about stem cells to get to the heart of our subject where nutrition makes a big difference. Therefore, just to cover the initial bases, we want only to answer at least a Top Five short list of questions.

1  What exactly are Stem Cells?

2  Are there different kinds of Stem Cells?

3  Why all the initial fuss about Embryonic Stem Cells?

4  Can Adult Stem Cells deliver the same benefits?

5  Do Adult Stem Cells originate in the bone marrow?

So let’s get started. 

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What exactly are Stem Cells?

The term Stem Cells refers to a group of cells in an organism that have two defining characteristics which distinguish them from other types of cells: 

(i)  They have the capacity to reproduce themselves (replicate) for very long periods of time (often throughout the entire life cycle of the organism).

(ii)  They can, under certain conditions in the body (in vivo) or in the laboratory (in vitro), produce daughter cells that eventually become other specific types of cells by a process called differentiation or specialization.

Let’s put it another way.  Other cells in the body which are more specialized are known generally as somatic cells.  These cells never differentiate into other types of cells – brain cells are brain cells and will always be; pancreatic cells are pancreatic cells and also will never become anything else.  Furthermore, they will often not proliferate (or multiply) and certainly not indefinitely.  These are examples of cells that are highly specialized and fully committed to what they are and what they do.  By contrast, stem cells remain undifferentiated and unspecialized in function until they receive some signal that triggers them to transform either by replication or differentiation into some other type of cell which finally becomes committed to its new identity.

A simple working definition of a stem cell has therefore been derived as a cell that can duplicate indefinitely and become eventually cells of any organ in the body.

In practical terms, two other defining characteristics are often cited to justify the classification of ‘stemness’ and any given cell group or type can be formally demonstrated to be ‘stem cells’ if