Why should a stem cell differentiate when a cell can divide itself?

Question

for example: skin cell divides and forms tissues what does stem cell do even if it will also divide? when is stem cell work in many other tissues?

i heard that sc"s are there only in a diseased tissue{they work}

Answer 1

Many different cell types in the body do NOT divide any more. When they are lost, they must be replaced by a stem cell dividing and differentiating into that cell type.

The current belief is that stem cells are present in low numbers in just about ALL tissues, and it is actually them which divide and replace lost cells in most circumstances.

As an example:

your red blood cells (erythrocytes) are terminally differentiated, and have no nucleus. They therefore cannot divide, and when they reach the end of their 4 month lifespan, they must be replaced from another source. This source is haematopoetic stem cells in your bone marrow: these are stem cells which are capable of differentiating into ANY blood cell type (erythrocyte, lymphocyte, macrophage, monocyte, basophil, eosinophil, neutrophil, platelet, etc.) - and it is them which replace "used up" blood cells of all sorts.

Answer 2

The importance of stem cells is that it starts to divide in the type of cells, its surrounded by, a character that other cells dont have.

As it has been said that their may be cells that stop dividing e.g nerve cells.

hope it helped.