Cell therapy describes the process of introducing new cells into a tissue in order to treat a disease. Cell therapies often focus on the treatment of hereditary diseases, with or without the addition of gene therapy.
The application of modified human cells that are used to produce a needed substance.
The xenotransplantation of non-human cells that are used to produce a needed substance. For example, treating diabetic patients by introducing insulin-producing pig cells directly into their muscle.
The transplantation of transdifferentiated cells derived from the patient's own differentiated cells. For example, the use of insulin producing beta cells transdifferentiated from isolated hepatocytes as a treatment for diabetes.
Increasingly, mesenchymal stem cells are being proposed as agents for cell-based therapies, due to their plasticity, established isolation procedures, and capacity for ex vivo expansion.
