The Battle Against Muscular Dystrophy Continues

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A molecular biologist from the University of Texas stated that a new treatment for muscular dystrophy might be in the making. Scientists in the United States reported this past weekend that they had used stem cell transplants to improve the muscular function of mice afflicted with muscular dystrophy. While this is the first incident in which transplanted embryonic stem cells have shown to improve conditions in mice, approval in use on humans will be at some date in the future. Says Rita Perlingeiro from the University of Texas; "We envision eventually developing a stem cell therapy for humans. These cells can be transplanted into the muscle, and they cause muscle regeneration."
Although such therapy may still be years away, it does give anyone suffering from muscular dystrophy hope for the future. There are almost a dozen different degenerative diseases that affect the muscles, and one of the most common afflicts children, who rarely live into their 30s. Many muscle fibers contain dystrophin, which is missing or severely lacking in patients who suffer from any form of muscular dystrophy. Using pluripotent stem cells from adult human skin would accelerate this study process.

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