The transformation of pancreas cells from one type to another has been hailed as a breakthrough: until now, such tricks required of scientifically -- and sometimes ethically -- tricky stem cells.
But for all its promise, the new technique -- like de-differentiation before it -- won't replace embryonic stem cells, and wouldn't have been possible without them.
"We wouldn't be where we are today without working with human embryonic stem cells. They provide a unique window into human development and disease. We still need those," said Douglas Melton, co-director of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and co-author of the transformation paper, published today in Nature.
As of now, Melton's technique doesn't appear to have provoked the same commentary as de-differentiation, in which adult cells are reprogrammed into an embryonic state. When that feat was announced in November, President Bush hailed it in his State of the Union address as an alternative to embryonic stem cells, and many conservatives followed suit.
Scientists soon pointed out that de-differentiated cells were unproven -- and, that aside, de-differentiation wouldn't have been possible without insights generated from the research that embryonic stem cell critics had condemned. The same holds true for the latest breakthrough.
"The goal of regenerative medicine is to make useful cells," said Melton. "I'll use induced pluripotency, embryos, direct reprogramming -- if I knew which path worked best, I'd try it, but I'm not smart enough. So we're trying all ways. I'm obsessed with beta cells, and I'll try any way of making them."
Image: Pancreas tissue cells transformed into insulin-producing beta cells at work, courtesy of Nature.
See Also:
- Going From One Cell Type To Another Without Using Stem Cells
- Skin Cell-to-Stem Cell Alchemy 'Like Turning Lead Into Gold'
- Hacking the Hack of Stem Cell Reprogramming
- Bush Praises Skin to Stem Cell Breakthrough in State of the Union
- Too Soon to Give Up on Embryonic Stem Cells
- From Mice to Men: Tracing the Skin Cell to Stem Cell Path
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