Cell Notes: Uncommon Cellular Starting Materials: Where Novel Therapies Begin

May 29, 2025

In her monthly column "Cell Notes," AABB's Christina Celluzzi, PhD, MS, CABP(H), shares insights, findings and commentary on emerging topics in biotherapies. Subscribe to CellSource, AABB's biotherapies newsletter, to receive "Cell Notes" and the latest news directly in your inbox.

One of the most energizing parts of attending scientific conferences is stumbling across a topic you never expected to find so fascinating. Often, it’s a breakout session off the main track or a poster you notice by chance. For me, it’s presentations on lesser-known or “uncommon” cellular starting materials that consistently steal the show.

While much of the field’s attention is rightly focused on established sources, like mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), a new wave of therapies is emerging from more unconventional origins. Some are easily collected; others were once discarded—but all are revealing untapped potential for regenerative medicine, immune modulation and functional tissue repair.

A few standout examples:

Amniotic fluid cells. With regenerative and anti-inflammatory properties, these cells are being investigated for neonatal conditions and wound healing.
Urine-derived stem cells. Collected noninvasively, these cells are under study for urologic and neurologic therapies, as well as bioprinted tissue constructs.
Dental pulp stem cells. Harvested from baby teeth, they’re being explored for use in therapies for spinal cord injury and stroke recovery.
Nasal mucosa stem cells. Collected with a simple swab, they’re showing promise for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.
Decidual stromal cells. Sourced from the maternal side of the placenta, these cells offer potential for immune tolerance and are being studied in transplant-related applications like graft-versus-host disease.

And then there’s one source that deserves far more attention: skeletal muscle-derived cells (SMDCs).

These cells have been studied for years, but a specific therapy recently caught my attention—thanks to a tip from a fellow attendee at a recent conference. (Thank you, Dr. Land!)

The therapy, iltamiocel, is an autologous cell product derived from a patient’s own skeletal muscle and has received Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapy (RMAT) designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration—recognition of a promising treatment for a serious condition with an unmet medical need. Iltamiocel is currently in development for conditions like female stress urinary incontinence, fecal incontinence and oropharyngeal dysphagia—common, quality-of-life issues that often don’t receive the spotlight in cell therapy conversations.

Iltamiocel represents a highly personalized, functional approach: collect the patient’s own muscle cells, expand and process them, then reinfuse them to help repair and strengthen targeted muscle groups. It’s an elegant example of using autologous cells not just to fight disease but to restore everyday function for millions of patients.

These examples—whether from amniotic fluid, urine, teeth, nasal swabs, placenta or muscle —challenge us to rethink what makes a cell “valuable” in therapeutic development. Sometimes innovation comes from the overlooked, the discarded or the unexpected.

That’s the magic of scientific meetings: you walk in hoping to deepen your expertise and walk out thinking about starting materials you’d never even considered.

Are you working with an unconventional cell source? Let’s keep the conversation going. Join us this fall in San Digo for the #AABB2025 Annual Meeting, Oct. 25–28. You’re bound to find sessions that surprise and inspire—ones that just might change your view of where tomorrow’s therapies begin. And who knows, you might just meet someone who points you to something truly fascinating.