A generation of regeneration

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A generation of regeneration

• Repair of muscle tendons
• Marleaux Williams
• 9/11/07

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Purpose of tendons

• Tendons are the tough extensions that attach
  muscles to the bone.
• They also help focus the pull of the muscle into
  a relatively small area.
• Some tendons attach to the end of muscles, while
  others attach along side or at the center.

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Injury to the tendons

• Ruptured or torn tendons are rare because of
  their elasticity and high breaking strength.
• Victims of torn muscles are usually athletes
  because of great tension and overexertion

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Treatment

• In the past, treatment was normally difficult and
  usually took a great deal of time.
• Damaged tendon tissue heals slowly and rarely
  regains the integrity or strength of a normal,
  undamaged tendon.
• New studies have shown that at the molecular
  level, tendons may have the ability to
  proliferate and self-renew.
• These are the stem cell characteristics.

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USC research team identifies new discovery

• USC researcher Songtao Shi was able to isolate
  the stem cells and regenerate tendon-like tissue
  in an animal model.
• This exhibits the ability to collect the cells
  and control their formation into tendon cells.
• This could mean a major breakthrough for sports
  therapy and sports medicine.

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What this means for the future

• Just think of the possibility of humans have the
  power to regenerate or repair their own body
  parts quickly and efficiently.
• This could mean less loss of limbs, tendons,
  muscle tissue, and nerves due to other medical
  conditions in the future.

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How soon will it be?

• Although a small amount of research has been done
  on humans at this point, undoubtedly that will be
  the next step to achieve in this groundbreaking
  discovery.
• As soon as next year experimentation will begin
  on the injured tendons of humans.

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References

• www.Answers.com/topic/tendons
• www.biologynews.net/archives/2007/09/09
• www.emedicinehealth.com
• www.nature.com/nm