Some might expect an institution like MIT or Harvard to discover a completely new type of stem cell in umbilical cords, but it was first discovered at K-State - by accident.
In 2000, three K-State professors gathered pig umbilical cords to study a group of cells in the connective tissue that possibly could be used to grow other types of cells.
When the professors started studying the umbilical cords, Dr. Deryl Troyer, professor of veterinary medicine, said they found something they were not expecting. He said they found several cells located in the Wharton's jelly, a mucus tissue that protects and insulates cells in the umbilical cord, that showed the typical structure and activity of stem cells.
"We put the Wharton's jelly in the dish and didn't do it in such a way to encourage isolation of the cells, but they grew out in large numbers anyway," Troyer said.
In 2003, Troyer, Duane Davis, professor of animal science and industry and Mark Weiss, professor of anatomy and physiology, co wrote a journal entry on their findings of the new type of treatment using non controversial, readily available stem cells, which they decided to call umbilical cord matrix cells.
After the report was published in several journals, the university and the world soon took notice. A few years later, the Midwest Institute for Comparative Stem Cell Research was established at K-State. The institute receives $350,000 a year as part of the university's Targeted Excellence program, which allots a certain amount of money to a few areas of K-State research.
"That is a big deal because the university thinks this is an area that could move it to the top of land-grant universities," Davis said.
It also is a big deal for countries across the world. Troyer said several labs have been set up, especially in Europe, to study the same matrix cells the K-State professors discovered.
"It just seems like new things are surfacing everyday," Troyer said.
Troyer said after they released a report on their findings in 2003, they decided to focus on different areas of the stem cells' possibilities.
THE RESEARCH
Troyer said his research focuses on improving the use of cells as delivery mechanisms, which means the stem cells would be able to hone in on treating damaged cells with immune-system detection and treat them.
"You have a way to use these almost like a Trojan horse," Troyer said. "It's a very intriguing idea."
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