Introduction: Stem cells are unspecialized cells with the ability to differentiate into other cells. In addition, they have the ability to self-renew, and these characteristics of stem cells have made scientists pay attention to these cells.
Methods: This study was searched in Google Scholar and PubMed databases using the keyword "stem cells". We only reviewed review articles and provided information obtained from the articles to the corresponding author. Finally, the obtained information was categorized.
Results: These categories include: A) definition of stem cells and types of them, B) identification and history of stem cells, and C) application of stem cells. And then we categorized the applications of stem cells as follows: 1) Pharmaceutical research: Investigating the molecular mechanisms of proteins or genes using stem cells can be useful for the targeted identification of drugs and investigate a specific drug. In addition, using stem cells can reduce the use of animal or human models, for example, stem cells can be used to study diseases pattern. 2) Disease modeling: This model is also similar to the previous one and instead of using animal and human models, diseases can be studied at the cellular level. 3) organ production: As mentioned, stem cells have the ability to differentiate and produce new cells and eventually tissues. Therefore, using stem cells, studies can be done at the cell and tissue level. 4) Treatment of diseases: One of the successful treatment strategies for blood disease and related diseases is hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
Conclusion: Due to their characteristics, stem cells can be widely used in regenerative medicine, and during the past years, by studying stem cells, new solutions have been suggested for their use.
Keywords: Stem cell, differentiate, regenerative medicine