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Stem cell

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Stem cells are cells found in most, if not all, multi-cellular organisms. They are characterized by the ability to renew themselves through mitotic cell division and differentiating into a diverse range of specialized cell types. Research in the stem cell field grew out of findings by Canadian scientists Ernest A. McCulloch and James E. Till in the 1960s. The two broad types of mammalian stem cells are: embryonic stem cells that are isolated from the inner cell mass of blastocysts, and adult stem cells that are found in adult tissues. In a developing embryo, stem cells can differentiate into all of the specialized embryonic tissues. In adult organisms, stem cells and progenitor cells act as a repair system for the body, replenishing specialized cells, but also maintain the normal turnover of regenerative organs, such as blood, skin or intestinal tissues.

Stem cells can now be grown and transformed into specialized cells with characteristics consistent with cells of various tissues such as muscles or nerves through cell culture. Highly plastic adult stem cells from a variety of sources, including umbilical cord blood and bone marrow, are routinely used in medical therapies. Embryonic cell lines and autologous embryonic stem cells generated through therapeutic cloning have also been proposed as promising candidates for future therapies.

For more information about Stem cell, read the full article at Wikipedia.
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News tagged with stem cell research

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Measure to change U. of Neb. stem-cell rule fails (AP)

Measure to change U. of Neb. stem-cell rule fails (Update 2)

Other Sciences / Other

created Nov 21, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

(AP) -- The University of Nebraska's governing board on Friday voted not to place tighter restrictions on embryonic stem cell research than those outlined under federal guidelines, which were expanded after ...


Embryonic stem cell therapy closer to human trials

Medicine & Health / Research

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Embryonic stem cell therapy got a step closer to the clinic Thursday after US researchers said they filed a request for government approval of human trials.


Stem cell cultures are held up in a US lab

Obama to reverse Bush limits on stem-cell research

Biology / Other

created Mar 06, 2009 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (9) | comments 31

US President Barack Obama will on Monday sign an executive order reversing Bush administration restrictions on federal funding for stem-cell research, a senior administration official said.


Reversing Brain Defects

Scientists succeed through stem cell therapy in reversing brain birth defects

Medicine & Health / Research

created Dec 29, 2008 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (8) | comments 0

Scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have succeeded in reversing brain birth defects in animal models, using stem cells to replace defective brain cells.


US lifts some restrictions on embryo stem cells

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Apr 17, 2009 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (3) | comments 0

(AP) -- When President Barack Obama eased limits on taxpayer-funded embryonic stem cell research, the big question became how far scientists could go. Friday, the government answered: They must use cells culled from fertility ...


US abortion views shift, majority are 'pro-life': poll

Medicine & Health / Other

created May 15, 2009 | popularity 3.2 / 5 (6) | comments 11

US opinion on abortion has shifted with, for the first time in nearly 15 years, a narrow 51-percent majority identifying themselves as "pro-life," according to a new Gallup poll published Friday.


Stem Cell Research Made Safer with Latest Discovery

Biology / Biotechnology

created May 15, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (5) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- A new development in stem cell research has resulted from a completed study by a collaboration of scientists using the drug Rapamycin to inhibit mTOR, an intracellular protein necessary in cell proliferation. ...


South Korea plans to build the world's largest stem cell research and treatment centre in Seoul by 2013

S.Korea lifts ban on stem cell research

Biology / Biotechnology

created Apr 29, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

South Korea on Wednesday conditionally lifted a ban on stem cell research using human eggs, three years after outlawing the practice because a scientist was found to have faked his work.


SKorea seeks jail for disgraced cloning scientist (AP)

SKorea seeks jail for disgraced cloning scientist

Biology / Biotechnology

created Aug 24, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 1

(AP) -- Prosecutors demanded a four-year prison term Monday for a South Korean scientist disgraced in a cloning scandal that shook the international scientific community and led to his trial on fraud and ...


South Korean scientist Hwang Woo-Suk plans to present two cloned dogs to one of the country's provinces

SKorean cloning expert to re-create dogs for province

Biology / Biotechnology

created Aug 31, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

South Korean scientist Hwang Woo-Suk plans to present two cloned dogs to one of the country's provinces to help it nurture a bio-technology industry, his research centre said Monday.


Scientists discover way to jumpstart bone's healing process

Medicine & Health / Research

created Apr 14, 2009 | popularity 3.3 / 5 (3) | comments 0

Rarely will physicians use the word "miraculous" when discussing patient recoveries. But that's the very phrase orthopaedic physicians and scientists are using in upstate New York to describe their emerging stem cell research ...


New battle lines drawn on stem cells

Biology / Other

created Mar 16, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1

Faced with a new federal policy that opens the door for more embryonic stem cell research, conservatives have geared up for a political battle at the national and state level that goes to the core of their beliefs about the ...


Some states push back against stem cell research (AP)

Some states push back against stem cell research

Biology / Other

created Mar 11, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1

(AP) -- A showdown is shaping up in some of the nation's most conservative states over embryonic stem cell research, as opponents draw language and tactics from the battle over abortion to counter President ...


US to fund research with some embryonic stem cells

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Apr 19, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 2

(AP) -- When President Barack Obama eased limits on taxpayer-funded embryonic stem cell research, the big question became how far scientists could go. Friday, the government answered: They must use cells culled from fertility ...


New stem cell research unlocks unknown therapies

Medicine & Health / Research

created May 21, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

New treatments for the devastating Parkinson's disease and ALS are in clinical studies in Sweden, thanks to breaking new stem cell research. This news was presented today by Dr. Jonas Frisen, Professor of stem cell research ...