Scientists in Japan showed stem cells can now be made quickly just by dipping blood cells into acid. Stem cells can transform into any tissue and are already being trialled for healing the eye, heart and brain. The human body is built of cells with a specific role - nerve cells, liver cells, muscle cells - and that role is fixed.
However, stem cells can become any other type of cell, and
they have become a major field of research in medicine for their
potential to regenerate the body.
Embryos are one, ethically charged, source of stem cells.
Nobel prize winning research also showed that skin cells could be
"genetically reprogrammed" to become stem cells (termed induced
pluripotent stem cells).
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