First miniature stomach was formed from stem cells by a group of scientists from the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in Ohio. This is a breakthrough in medicine as well as in their pursuit to study about gastric diseases specifically stomach ulcers. They used stem cells to make a 3D and functional stomach tissue in its early stages of development. They are hoping that someday, they can grow stomach tissues for transplanting.
The same scientists from Cincinnati Children's Hospital had grown intestine tissues from stem cells and now, they pushed further to create stomach tissues as well. Many individuals suffer from gastric ulcers and it is hard to treat. According to Statistics, there is a 20% occurrence of gastric ulcer worldwide. In Canada, there are 20 million individuals suffering gastrointestinal conditions including ulcers.
One of the culprits in the formation of ulcer is the bacteria Helicobacter pylori. This bacteria penetrates the lining of the stomach and can cause various symptoms including bloating, vomiting, and can even lead to ulcers and stomach cancer.
The team led by Dr. Jim Wells, said that this study is perfect for trial of many diagnosis and treatment to finally battle gastric ulcer and cancers. They found out that the organoids are lined in folds similar to that of the actual human stomach. Furthermore, the cells are arranged similar to that of how cells are lined in the human stomach.
Also, they believe that in the next five years, extensive research and improvement of the study can lead to patches of stomach lining transplanted to the human stomach in order to treat ulcers.
This is not the first time stem cells were used to grow human organs. In 2013, scientists have successfully grown kidneys from stem cells in the study of finally having available kidneys for transplant.