Discovering cells in the liver that may avoid transplants
British researchers say they have discovered a new type of cell in the human liver, hoping that in the future it will help treat diseases that affect the vital organ without having to be eradicated and compensated by agriculture.
According to the newatlas website, researchers at King's College London have shown that the components of this new type of cell are similar to stem cells.
When the liver develops diseases such as hepatitis A, B, C or fibrosis, the damage to the organ is permanent and irreversible, and then agriculture is the only possible solution.
The British study predicts that there will be a new treatment that completely eliminates agriculture by stimulating liver cells to regenerate themselves, whatever the damage they may have done.
The researchers studied the liver in embryos and adults, using a medical technique known as "RNA", and called this new species "HHyP", an acronym for "hybrid salafi liver cells."
"For the first time, we discover cells with stem cell-like components inside the liver," said Researcher Tamer Rashid, who is the supervisor of the medical study.
He added that the discovery of these cells would be a turning point in medicine and could provide a number of treatment options for liver diseases through what is known as "regeneration medicine".
Regenerative medicine seeks to make use of existing cells and tissues, in the event of disease, to avoid organ transplants.
Transplants require the finding of donated organs, are very complex and often costly.
Among the treatment options mentioned in the study was to convert multiple capacity cells into what is known as "hybrid salafi liver cells" and then transfer them to the patient's liver, to resolve tissue regeneration.
The second option available is easier, because it will depend on the direct stimulation of hybrid salafist cells, at which point the disease will be addressed.