In a breakthrough, scientists have successfully reprogrammed human skin cells to become embryonic stem cells capable of transforming into any other cell type in the body.
It is believed that stem cell therapies hold the promise of replacing cells damaged through injury or illness. Diseases or conditions that might be treated through stem cell therapy include Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, cardiac disease and spinal cord injuries.
The breakthrough, led by Shoukhrat Mitalipov, a senior scientist at Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC), follows previous success in transforming monkey skin cells into embryonic stem cells in 2007.
The technique used by Mitalipov, Paula Amato, and their colleagues in Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, is a variation of a commonly used method called somatic cell nuclear transfer, or SCNT.
It involves transplanting the nucleus of one cell, containing an individual's DNA, into an egg cell that has had its genetic material removed. The unfertilised egg cell then develops and eventually produces stem cells.
"A thorough examination of the stem cells derived through this technique demonstrated their ability to convert just like normal embryonic stem cells, into several different cell types, including nerve cells, liver cells and heart cells," Mitalipov said.
"Furthermore, because these reprogrammed cells can be generated with nuclear genetic material from a patient, there is no concern of transplant rejection.
"While there is much work to be done in developing safe and effective stem cell treatments, we believe this is a significant step forward in developing the cells that could be used in regenerative medicine," Mitalipov said in a statement.
While the method might be considered a technique for cloning stem cells, commonly called therapeutic cloning, the same method would not likely be successful in producing human clones otherwise known as reproductive cloning, the statement said.
Several years of monkey studies that utilise somatic cell nuclear transfer have never successfully produced monkey clones.It is expected that this is also the case with humans.
Furthermore, the comparative fragility of human cells as noted during this study, is a significant factor that would likely prevent the development of clones.
The study was published in the journal Cell.
