Medical breakthrough

Science World, Feb 18, 2008 by Cody Crane

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Cells formed during the earliest stages of human development can morph into any of the 220 types of cells in the body. These stem cells someday could cure a long list of illnesses by replacing diseased tissue. But studying the cells has been controversial because human embryos, which have the potential to grow into babies, are destroyed in the process.

One way around this dilemma: Reprogram adult cells to return to their embryonic state, eliminating the need for embryonic research. Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have done just that. They've switched on genes (units of hereditary information) in ordinary skin cells that cause them to function like stem cells.

"This may eventually be a very standard technique used in biology and medical research," says Kim Smuga-Otto, one of the study's researchers. Much more work needs to be done, but this process could pave the way for treatments using patients' own skin cells to make new brain neurons, heart muscle, or any other type of tissue needed.