Editorial
Copyright ©2012 Baishideng. All rights reserved.
World J Exp Med. Jun 20, 2012; 2(3): 37-44
Published online Jun 20, 2012. doi: 10.5493/wjem.v2.i3.37
Potential for a pluripotent adult stem cell treatment for acute radiation sickness
Denis O Rodgerson, Bruce E Reidenberg, Alan G Harris, Andrew L Pecora
Denis O Rodgerson, Alan G Harris, Andrew L Pecora, NeoStem, Inc., New York, NY 10170, United States
Bruce E Reidenberg, Department of Pharmacology, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, NY 10170, United States
Andrew L Pecora, The Cancer Center, Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, NJ 07601, United States
Author contributions: All authors contributed equally to this paper.
Correspondence to: Denis O Rodgerson, PhD, Director of Stem Cell Science, NeoStem, Inc., 420 Lexington Avenue, Suite 450, New York, NY 10170, United States. drodgerson@neostem.com
Telephone: +1-818-3261233 Fax: +1-646-5147787
Received: March 28, 2012
Revised: June 7, 2012
Accepted: June 15, 2012
Published online: June 20, 2012
Abstract

Accidental radiation exposure and the threat of deliberate radiation exposure have been in the news and are a public health concern. Experience with acute radiation sickness has been gathered from atomic blast survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and from civilian nuclear accidents as well as experience gained during the development of radiation therapy for cancer. This paper reviews the medical treatment reports relevant to acute radiation sickness among the survivors of atomic weapons at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, among the victims of Chernobyl, and the two cases described so far from the Fukushima Dai-Ichi disaster. The data supporting the use of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and the new efforts to expand stem cell populations ex vivo for infusion to treat bone marrow failure are reviewed. Hematopoietic stem cells derived from bone marrow or blood have a broad ability to repair and replace radiation induced damaged blood and immune cell production and may promote blood vessel formation and tissue repair. Additionally, a constituent of bone marrow-derived, adult pluripotent stem cells, very small embryonic like stem cells, are highly resistant to ionizing radiation and appear capable of regenerating radiation damaged tissue including skin, gut and lung.

Keywords: Nuclear accident, Acute radiation syndrome, Radiological casualties, Stem cell transplantation, Cellular therapy, Emergency response, Ionizing radiation injury, Hematopoietic rescue, Pluripotent stem cells, Induced pluripotent stem cells, Mesenchymal stem cells, Very small embryonic-like stem cells, Mobilizing agents