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Rapid Isolation of Human Breast Milk-Derived Extracellular Vesicles
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Rapid Isolation of Human Breast Milk-Derived Extracellular Vesicles

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Stem cells in human breast milk

Natalia Ninkina1,2, Michail S Kukharsky3,4, Maria V Hewitt3

  • 1Institute of Physiology Active Compounds, Russian Academy of Sciences, 1 Severnyj Proezd, Chernogolovka, Russian Federation. ninkinan@cf.ac.uk.

Human Cell
|April 12, 2019
PubMed

Recent studies have demonstrated that breast milk contains a population of cells displaying many of the properties typical of stem cells. This review outlines progress made in this newly emerging field of stem cell biology and provides an analysis of the available data on purification, propagation and differentiation of certain types of progenitor cells from breast milk. The possible fates of breast milk cells, including microchimerism caused by their transmission to the distant organs of the infant, are also discussed. Unique properties of breast milk-derived stem cells, such as their unusually low tumorigenic potential and their negligible ability to form teratomas, are highlighted as obvious advantages for using these cells in regenerative therapy.

Keywords:
Breast milkRegenerative medicineSource of human stem cellsStem cells

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