Eur J Pediatr Surg 2014; 24(03): 227-236
DOI: 10.1055/s-0034-1382259
Review
Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York

Regenerative Medicine in Urology

Massimo Garriboli
1   Department of Paediatric Urology, Evelina Children's Hospital, Guy's and St. Thomas NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom
,
Anna Radford
2   Department of Biology, Jack Birch Unit of Molecular Carcinogenesis, University of York, York, United Kingdom
,
Jennifer Southgate
2   Department of Biology, Jack Birch Unit of Molecular Carcinogenesis, University of York, York, United Kingdom
› Author Affiliations
Further Information

Publication History

04 May 2014

05 May 2014

Publication Date:
11 June 2014 (online)

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Abstract

Regenerative medicine is an emerging field that is focused on the repair, replacement or regeneration of tissues and organs. It involves multiple disciplines dedicated to delivering different aspects of the regeneration process, including cell biology, material sciences and bioengineering. The development of tissue engineering strategies incorporating the use of autologous stem cells holds particular promise for overcoming insufficiencies from using cells from the patient's own diseased tissues and providing solutions for treatment of many disorders of the genitourinary tract. Many experimental projects have successfully utilized stem cells and several pilot studies in humans indicate the potential of stem cell therapy. However, the discipline is still young and further knowledge of both materials and stem cell biology is required before this promise can be realized through clinical application. This review examines the principles related to regenerative medicine and bioengineering focusing on the stem cell isolation expansion and clinical application. Analysis of current achievements will be reviewed alongside the challenges that remain to be addressed in considering the present and future perspectives of regenerative medicine applied to urology.