Researchers from the David Geffen School of Medicine and the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science at UCLA have announced today to have successfully transformed adult stem cells taken from human adipose, or fat tissue into smooth muscle cells, which help the normal function of a large number of organs like the intestine, bladder and arteries.

The researchers announced that their study might help lead to the use of fat stem cells for smooth muscle tissue engineering and repair. The study had been reported in the July 24 online edition of the ‘Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences’, and is one of the first studies in showing that stem cells derived from adipose tissue could be changed to attain the physical and biochemical characteristics and the functionality of a smooth muscle cells.

Smooth muscle cells are found within the human body in the walls of hollow organs like blood vessels, bladder, and intestines and contract and expand to help transport blood, urine, and waste through the body's systems.

"Fat tissue may prove a reliable source of smooth muscle cells that we can use to regenerate and repair damaged organs," said Dr. Larissa V. Rodriguez,principal investigator and assistant professor, Department of Urology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

Rodriguez and her team first cultured the adipose-derived stem cells in a growth factor cocktail that encouraged the cells to transform into smooth muscle cells. Researchers observed the genetic expression and development of proteins, which are specific to this type of cell. So it looked like a smooth muscle cell, but would it act like one?