The bone marrow has been identified as one of the best sources of harvesting stem cells from adults, through bone marrow aspiration (BMA). The BMA process is a low-risk, invasive procedure usually performed on the back of the hip bone. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) that reside in the spongy bone are extracted from the bone marrow, where the half-day procedure leaves a very small, negligible scar on the back. The MSCs are then brought back to the laboratory to be processed and expanded.
It has been found that adipose tissue (fat tissue) contains mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). These MSCs are ideally harvested during liposuction, where instead of discarding the fat collected, the fat is brought back to the laboratory for MSCs isolation and expansion. Although the adipose-derived MSCs are currently investigated to treat a multitude of diseases, they are particularly suited for cosmetic indications.
Tooth-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), also known as dental pulp stem cells, can be found in the pulp tissue within a tooth. Pulp tissues can be retrieved from extracted teeth collected via your arranged wisdom tooth removals via orthodontic surgeries and also from naturally fallen teeth, where they are usually discarded as wastes, to store for future use. It offers simple, safe, and affordable with multiple opportunities to collect stem cells from children and adults when other alternatives are lacking.
Peripheral blood harvested from the circulating blood stream, much like umbilical cord blood, contains predominantly hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). The presence of stem cells in peripheral blood is indirectly induced through the introduction of Granulocyte Colony Stimulating Factor (GCS-F) into the blood stream. Stem cells harvested this way are known as peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs).