Skin Cells Made into Heart Cells

Scientists at UCLA have succeeded in reprogramming stem cells from mouse skin to become functioning cardiac cells. This is the first trial to find that partially differentiated, or iPS cells that don’t involve embyos or eggs can be made into the three types of cardiac cells needed for heart repair. Senior author of the study Dr. Robb MacLellan says the results are encouraging.

“I believe iPS cells address many of the shortcomings of human embryonic stem cells and are the future of regenerative medicine,” said MacLellan, an associate professor of cardiology and physiology. “I’m hoping that these scientific findings are the first step towards one day developing new therapies that I can offer my patients. There are still many limitations with using iPS cells in clinical studies that we must overcome, but there are scientists in labs across the country working to address these issues right now.”

Further studies at UCLA will try to determine whether human cells can be reprogrammed as well as the mouse cells. Link -via Digg

(image credit: Dake)