For that other half of the human population, menstruation
It is the menstrual fluid that is expelled through the vagina, there is the lining of the uterus where a fertilized egg can be implanted and it is basically endometrial cells, mucosa and blood.
The uterus literally takes it out by force by contracting strongly, an experience that only women know about, this is where the menstrual cycle begins and lasts between 3 and 7 days, in the ovaries between 5 and 20 follicles begin to grow where new eggs will be produced , only one or two will mature and be released to travel to the uterus, at the same time the endometrium, the internal tissue of the uterus, prepares the lining for an egg to implant if it is fertilized and if this does not happen, the lining detaches again. And we start menstruation again, all of this lasts a month, more or less.
Curiously, menstruation is a rare process among mammals, it only happens in some species of primates including us, the elephant shrew, which is very funny that it is called that because it only measures about 25 cm, some bats and the Egyptian spiny mouse, the latter is about Wolverine-level regenerative powers, heals his wounds in fast motion.
What happens with dogs is not menstruation because their blood does not come from the uterus but from the vagina and it happens before ovulation and not after, it is something else, which is why human menstruation has always been a mystery.
Why, if practically all mammals function perfectly without it, a few lucky species have it, in short, it is because menstruation is an automatic mechanism to terminate pregnancies that do not pass quality control, but continues to function even if there is no fertilized embryo.
Pero ahora la menstruación podría ayudarnos a curar enfermedades, la clave son las células madre, un tipo de célula muy flexible que al reproducirse se puede volver diferentes tipos de tejido, los embriones al principio solo tienen este tipo de células que tienen la capacidad de convertirse en todas las células especializadas que van a necesitar para construir sus diferentes tipos de tejidos, células musculares, de los huesos, células grasas, células de la sangre, nerviosas, inmunes epiteliales etcétera.
Las células madres se pueden usar como medicina regenerativa o sea para reparar o reemplazar células tejidos u órganos enfermos, así que su potencial es increíble en el presente, su uso más común es el tratamiento de trasplante de médula ósea y enfermedades de la sangre o el sistema inmunológico y aunque existen muchos ensayos clínicos que utilizan células madre para tratar literalmente cualquier tipo de tejido dañado desde la piel y los órganos hasta la retina, existen barreras éticas que no permiten que estas investigaciones avancen como deberían.
Esto es porque la principal fuente de células madre son los embriones humanos sobrantes de clínicas de fertilización in vitro y para utilizarlas los embriones se tienen que destruir, lo que puede ser moralmente cuestionable dependiendo de qué tanta personalidad y derechos se cree que tengan embriones de cinco días, fuera de esta controversia existen otras fuentes de células madre donde no se tienen que destruir embriones como donación de fluido de médula ósea que se tiene que sacar de una persona adulta por medio de un proceso bien invasivo y las liposucciones que son todavía más invasivas y peligrosas.
These sources, although they are not so morally problematic, are not so useful, while embryonic stem cells are pluripotent, meaning they can be transformed into any type of tissue, adult stem cells that we extract from adults through procedures such as liposuction and bone marrow donation, are multipotent, meaning that they are limited to becoming cells of bones, muscles, blood vessels, cartilage, tendons, nerves and even liver cells, which is not little, but it is much less than what the embryonic stem cells are capable of doing.
But there is a type of stem cell that has it all, menstrual stem cells, on the one hand, have much more plasticity than other sources of non-embryonic stem cells, that is, they can be transformed into more things in more types of cells and tissues, and On the other hand, their availability is enormous because literally half of the human population produces them during much of their lives. These stem cells from the endometrium can reproduce much faster than the others, doubling their quantity in just 19 hours instead the two to eight days it takes for other sources of non-embryonic stem cells.
The capacity of menstrual stem cells has been tested in several clinical studies and has incredible potential in regenerative medicine. In one study, their effectiveness was proven in the regeneration of nerve cells to treat Alzheimer's and in others, they were able to produce insulin as Pancreatic cells have also been used to restore liver function, improve post-Covid-19 recovery, reduce infertility, and accelerate wound healing.
This is just the beginning and in India there are already menstrual fluid donation banks that will surely expand to places where more research is carried out, the sky seems to be the limit with this incredible tool, perhaps it will help you see the menstruation of a more positively than has been done in the past.
I hope you learned something new like I did.
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