Stem Cells Identified in Human Breast Milk

Fascinating news out of Perth, Australia, as researchers report that human breast milk contains stem cells that potentially could be harvested to treat all manner of injuries and diseases. ScienceAlert quotes molecular biologist Dr. Mark Cregan:

We already know how breast milk provides for the baby’s nutritional needs, but we are only just beginning to understand that it probably performs many other functions.

Journalist Catherine Madden sums up Dr. Cregan’s theory on the “developmental guidance” that he believes breast milk provides:

He says that, in essence, a new mother’s mammary glands take over from the placenta to provide the development guidance to ensure a baby’s genetic destiny is fulfilled.

Dr. Cregan explains:

The point is that many mothers see milks as identical – formula milk and breast milk look the same so they must be the same. But we know now that they are quite different and a lot of the effects of breast milk versus formula don’t become apparent for decades. Formula companies have focused on matching breast milk’s nutritional qualities but formula can never provide the developmental guidance.

In the coming years scientists will attempt to harvest the stem cells from breast milk for research, thereby avoiding the ethical dilemma of harvesting stem cells from human embryos. Then it will be seen whether the stem cells in breast milk can be “reprogrammed” to form different types of human tissue.

Thanks so much to Kelley for the tip on this amazing story!