Cell Therapy Research May Slow Down Aging
Cell therapy may hold the key to slowing down the aging process. Researchers at Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute are working on a platform to identify cells that can help damaged tissue regrow.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Taiwan is searching for the fountain of youth, but the search isn't a daring expedition
00:06into the unknown.
00:08It involves pipettes, experimentation, and patience.
00:13The key here is cell therapy.
00:16Cell therapy involves extracting so-called supercells from a donor and implanting them
00:21in a patient where they start to grow and multiply.
00:26Supercells may sound like a one-size-fits-all solution, but it's not that simple.
00:32The science behind it is precise and only certain supercells can treat certain medical
00:37conditions.
00:38Currently, there isn't enough data to tell us what kind of supercells are best suited
00:43for fixing different problems.
00:46That's where Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute comes in.
00:52It's working on a database called Key Functional Cell Identity, or KFCI, to identify which
00:59supercells are most suitable for treatment.
01:02We don't want to put it in your body and you don't know what actually the treatment
01:09will make me feel better.
01:12So that's the key point why we want to develop this platform.
01:18So far, the database has successfully identified supercells suitable for treating 40 medical
01:24conditions.
01:25They've had the most success with treating patients with myocardial infarction or heart
01:30attack and wounds in patients with diabetes, which usually take more time to heal.
01:36We did this one, it's for like you can treat or restore your organ.
01:43So that's why right now we do this one, it's for myocardial infarction, and the other is
01:50like diabetes wounds.
01:53KFCI works by identifying certain biomarkers in donor cells.
01:58This could be anything from genetic indicators to proteins.
02:02Cells with different biomarkers are tested against several medical conditions to see
02:07which combination of biomarkers shows the most promise for treatment.
02:12And we're using not just the gene label, we're going to even the protein and can tell
02:20you how the behavior of your cell.
02:23And then you can have the way to identify who is a really super donor.
02:28Think about it this way.
02:30The treatment to a certain medical condition is like a password.
02:34The biomarkers are the numbers and letters that make up the password.
02:38Once researchers figure out the right password for each medical condition, then they unlock
02:42an effective therapy.
02:45The potential for this technology is vast.
02:48It might even help slow down aging.
02:51As you grow older, the body wears down.
02:54But if KFCI can find the supercells that can help regenerate or even regrow organs, then
02:59it could prolong human life.
03:01In the future, we hope it can just like do like the OA for the need to recover back.
03:10And because of its life-extending potential, the team behind KFCI earned an Edison Award
03:16from the U.S. recognizing innovation in biomedicine.
03:20Could be a life changer.
03:21You know, it could really, once that hits the market and you start to gather more data,
03:26you could literally change how long people live and their quality of life.
03:30In the future, researchers plan to culture cells on computer chips for quicker analysis.
03:36Once the database is more complete, supercells can be cultured with robotics for production,
03:42bringing down costs.
03:44Taiwan is in a race to become a leader in cell therapy.
03:48But this technology is not so much about big aha moments, but rather it's about strapping
03:53down, doing the research, and finding treatments one biomarker at a time.
03:58Ryan Wu and Leslie Liao in Hsinchu for Taiwan Plus.