Center for Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute and Department of Pediatrics, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, California.
Pediatr Res. 2018 Jan;83(1-2):191-204. doi: 10.1038/pr.2017.258. Epub 2017 Dec 13.
With translational stem cell biology and Regenerative Medicine (the field to which the former gave rise) now over a quarter century old, it is time to take stock of where we have been and where we are going. This editorial overview, which serves as an introduction to this special issue of Pediatric Research dedicated to these fields, reinforces the notion that stem cells are ultimately intrinsic parts of developmental biology, for which Pediatrics represents the clinical face. Although stem cells provide the cellular basis for a great deal of only recently recognized plasticity programmed into the developing and postdevelopmental organism, and although there is enormous promise in harnessing this plasticity for therapeutic advantage, their successful use rests on a deep understanding of their developmental imperatives and the developmental programs in which they engage. The potential uses of stems are ranked and discussed in the order of most readily achievable to those requiring extensively more work. Although that order may not be what was contemplated at the field's birth, we nevertheless retain an optimism for the ultimate positive impact of exploiting this fundamental biology for the well-being of children.
随着转化干细胞生物学和再生医学（前者所引发的领域）已经有二十五年的历史，现在是时候评估我们的过去和未来了。本社论概述作为本期儿科研究特刊的介绍，强调了干细胞最终是发育生物学的内在组成部分，而儿科学则代表了临床方面。尽管干细胞为发育和发育后生物体中最近才认识到的大量可塑性提供了细胞基础，并且利用这种可塑性获得治疗优势具有巨大的潜力，但它们的成功应用取决于对其发育必然性和参与的发育程序的深刻理解。根据最容易实现的顺序对干细胞的潜在用途进行了排名和讨论，然后是需要更多工作的用途。尽管这个顺序可能不是该领域诞生时所设想的，但我们仍然对利用这种基础生物学为儿童的健康带来的最终积极影响保持乐观。
