dr barbara brockwaywrites
a newgeneration of anti-ageing
Dr Barbara Brockway considers stemcells in skin care
What is all the fuss about stemcells? Is it true that they will stopme ageing? Are there immortal cells? Even beforeMary Shelly published her famous novel Frankenstein in 1818, people were pondering on the 'spark of life'.
We now know that every cell in our bodies contains the same DNA blue print yet skin is skin and liver is liver. If there are cells in our bodies with the 'recipe' formaking insulin, why should anyone be diabetic?This type of question drives scientists and the lay public to look further.
Amore recent book than Frankenstein, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot, explains in easy to understand terms, the origins of the immortal cell line known as
HeLa.Yes, there are immortalised
cells.This book is an excellent 'door into the world of cell biology', open to the non-scientist. It has been through the study of HeLa cells and how simpler organisms function that has enabled cell biologists to discover and ‘master’ stemcells.
For decades, we have known that simpler animals have the ability to 'regenerate' lost tissue. Studying the regeneration of amphibian limbs and learning how to culture delicate cells in the laboratory, has enabled scientists to understandmore about the ways that the DNA blueprint is expressed. Clever techniques are being used to switch on and off to 'up regulate and down regulate' the genes in a cell's DNA.
Not all cells are susceptible to manipulation; however, certain cells can readily be encouraged to become any one of a variety of different specialised
Stemcells canmultiply and differentiate into cells of different cell-types depending on their location and on the 'needs' of the organism.
cells.We now know that these 'flexible' cells or stemcells are naturally part of all of
us.They can, and domultiply and differentiate into cells of different cell- types depending on their location and on the 'needs' of the organism.
The first stemcells to hit the headlines were those isolated fromembryos. Embryonic stemcells, unsurprisingly sparked the fear of ‘Frankenstein’ in the public’smind.
Adult stemcells, however, proved to be less controversial and as they are part of an organisms normal 'repair and replenish'
mechanisms.Adult stemcells maintain the healthy turnover of regenerative organs including skin and so are obvious targets for anti-ageing. Some
of the extracts and actives that have long histories of safe use in cosmeticsmay improve skin by 'encouraging' skins stem cells.
Mibelle Biochemistry Group deserves credit for introducing the personal care industry to extractsmade fromstemcells of an old apple cultivar with excellent storage
properties.Through 'plant cell culture' techniques, they are able to obtain commercial quantities of this extract. Published data shows this extract is active in a number of areas involved in ageing. For example, it enhances the viability of umbilical cord blood stem cells, reversing senescence signs in human fibroblast cells and increasing the lifespan of isolated human hair follicles.
GUILD NEWS 55
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