Excerpts
GWEN IFILL (Newshour): Today's news of a breakthrough in stem cell research captured the attention of scientists around the world.
For years, researchers have been investigating how to get adult stem cells to behave more like embryonic ones, which would allow them to be developed into almost any organ or tissue. The findings announced today involve a simple treatment, immersing adult mouse cells in a mild acid bath. As seen here, mouse embryos were grown with beating heart cells derived from this process.
Dr. Charles Vacanti was one of the lead researchers from the team at Brigham and Women's Hospital. And he joins me now.
----
GWEN IFILL: Well, one the differences, it seems to me, is that you know the debate around stem cell research has always been around embryonic stem cell research, because you had to destroy embryos in order to get access to that. And that has crossed all kinds of barriers for people. This, if it pans out, removes that possibility?
CHARLES VACANTI: That was the intention.
So it is my belief that we can now create autologous, so specific for any individual, their own embryonic stem cells for use to generate new tissue without ever having to create an embryo or ever having to destroy an embryo.
No comments:
Post a Comment