Research with stem cells has discovered the existence of stem cells in the tendon. These can lead to improvements in the treatment of tendon injuries and save the patient from possible operations.
Latest stem cell research
The buildup of scar tissue makes recovery from torn rotator cuffs, jumper's knees, and other tendon injuries a painful and challenging process that often leads to secondary ruptures. New research results prove the existence of tendon stem cells. Medicine can potentially use this to improve tendon healing and even avoid surgery.
“Tendons are connective tissue that connects our muscles to our bones,” explained Chen-Ming Fan, the leader of this study. “They improve our stability and facilitate the transmission of force with which we can move. But tendons are also particularly susceptible to injuries and damage.”
Unfortunately, tendons rarely fully recover after injury. This can lead to limited mobility and often requires onelong-term pain therapyor even surgery. This is due to fibrous scars that disrupt the tissue structure of the tendon. Working with Carnegie's Tyler Harvey and Sara Flamenco, Fan uncovered all the cell types found in the patellar tendon beneath the kneecap, including previously undefined stem cells.
Medical perspectives
Stem cells are “empty” cells that are associated with almost every tissue type. However, these have not fully differentiated into a specific functionality. They can also renew themselves and form a pool from which newly differentiated cell types can form. This means they can support the function of a certain tissue. For example, muscle stem cells can differentiate into muscle cells. Stem cells for tendons were previously unknown.
Surprisingly, the team's research showed that both fibrous scar tissue cells and tendon stem cells arise in the same area - the protective cells that surround a tendon. Furthermore, these are part of a competitive system with precursors of fibrous scars. This explains why tendon healing is such a challenge.
The team demonstrated that both tendon stem cells and scar tissue progenitor cells are stimulated by a protein called platelet growth factor A. If such stem cells are modified so that they do not respond to this growth factor, only scar tissue and no new tendon cells will form after an injury.
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