Following up
Using stem cells to heal tiny lungs
Story by Karen Thomas/Photo by Laughing Dog
Dr. Bernard Thébaud lives in two different worlds. As a specialist in the Stollery Children’s Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Royal Alexandra Hospital, he cares for tiny babies, many of whom struggle for breath after being born weeks before they are due. Across town, in his laboratory in the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Alberta, Dr. Thébaud dons a lab coat and peers into a microscope to examine the precise effect of stem cells on the lungs.
Recently, Dr. Thébaud narrowed the gap between those two worlds with the publication of scientific research in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
An international team of scientists led by Dr. Thébaud has demonstrated for the first time that stem cells protect and repair the lungs of newborn rats. “The really exciting thing that we discovered was that stem cells are like little factories, pumping out healing factors,” says Dr. Thébaud. “That healing liquid seems to boost the power of the healthy lung cells and helps them to repair the lungs.”
In this study, Dr. Thébaud’s team simulated the conditions of prematurity—giving the newborn rats oxygen. The scientists then took stem cells, which are derived from bone marrow, and injected them into the rats’ airways. Two weeks later, the rats treated with stem cells were able to run twice as far as they had prior to treatment and had better survival rates. When Dr. Thébaud’s team looked at the lungs, they found the stem cells had repaired the lungs and prevented further damage. The team is now investigating the long-term safety of using stem cells as a lung therapy. “When these tiny babies are born too early, they simply cannot breathe on their own. To save their lives, we put them on a ventilator and give them oxygen, leaving many of them with chronic lung disease,” says Dr. Thébaud. “Before the next decade is out, I want to put a stop to this devastating disease.”
To view a video of Dr. Thébaud discussing his discovery go to http://www.ahfmr.ab.ca/news/2009-11-26.php.