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Stem-Cell-Like Cells Produced From Skin

MikShapi writes "Skin cells can now be turned into something resembling stem cells. A genetic modification to four genes using a viral vector reverses differentiating, making the cells revert to a stem-cell state, capable for becoming any other cell in the body. The researchers are calling them 'iPS cells' or 'induced pluripotent stem cells.' In their experiments, iPS cells in the lab turned into nerve cells, heart muscle, and other tissues. The research was published in Cell and Nature by teams from the universities of Kyoto and Wisconsin. The article notes that if the new method proves successful, 'we can disconnect the whole stem cell debate from the culture war, from battles over embryo politics and abortion rights.' And, should this technique be adopted, stem cells will henceforth be abundant, easier and cheaper to come by for research and therapeutic purposes."

5 of 265 comments (clear)

  1. MOD PARENT TROLL by Bryansix · · Score: 0, Troll

    Look, while a small minority of people may attack this research it will not get the kind of condemnation as embryonic stem cell research. I am against Embryonic stem cell research and I am not against this research. I think South Park made the best argument against using unborn baby tissue as research. There is no reason to drag religion through the mud because you don't understand the issue.

  2. Re:follow-up story... by Strange+Ranger · · Score: 0, Troll

    Informative??

    Please mod me to hell so I can rid myself of this dirty karma.
    I need soap and hot water.

    --

    Operator, give me the number for 911!
  3. Re:The science! by PWNT · · Score: 0, Troll

    What is your earliest memory? Because to you, YOU do not even exist before that point. Use the earliest verifiable memory as a starting point for abortion. (That or when the cell clump/fetus/baby is capable of independent breathing and feeding with an operational brain)

  4. Re:The science! by PWNT · · Score: 0, Troll

    man you are taking this way out of wack, we already experiment on babies all the time.

    giving folate to mothers and having a control group is science and an exeriment. finding out if alcohol is implicite in miscarrage, same thing. these are experiments, not vivisection certainly, but still experiments.

    point is get a bunch of parents to show their kid a green ball or something and ask them 1, 3, 5, 10 years later if they remember. Have a control group where you dont show the ball and ask the questions. if you want to pinpoint memory formation, you need studies to say when babies can begin forming memories (long term symbolic memory, not muscle memory for walking running throwing). heck you could use talking. just check the average age at which a baby talks.

    so in conclusion not difficult and not nazi'ish in any way.

    abortion, heck it's not even morally wierd, animals do it all the time and humans are animals with bigger brains(haha). People is asia dump girl babies in dumpsters because males are 'worth' more. I've gotta find the study that showed most cases of baby death(like 3/4 of SIDS cases) are in fact infantcide (intentional or through negligance) by the mother because she feels she cannot care for the baby.

    so ask yourself is the investment of birthing a baby at the cost of the mother worth it? if abortion is murder what is the penalty? draw the line at one cell and everything is pretty f'ed up.

  5. Re:The science! by thej1nx · · Score: 0, Troll
    We find this definition has a scientific and ethical clearity that can avoid a lot of the horrors of history that now (most of) humanity regrets based on what counts as a human worthy of protection.


    And what "horrors of history" would those be? Frankenstein's Monster? Inhabitants of the island of Dr Moreau? Mind quoting a non-science-fiction example of your strawman? But here is what your enlightened leaders do to those that they *do* recognize as humans, based on your "definition" :

    Cluster bombing innocent civilians as collateral damage in a war waged over fake reasons and imaginary threats? Making laws to torture and imprison them without trials? No problem! http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/fogofwar/index/cdamage.htm

    Proceeding to support *another* nuclear proliferating dictator while waging the above war, and assisting in trampling human and civil rights of others and trampling on their right to have a democracy? No problem! http://www.voanews.com/english/2007-11-21-voa1.cfm

    Causing deaths of millions of babies by withholding medicines and food, and claiming that the "price(killing these babies) was worth it"! No problem with that either! Those were non-american babies and thus not "really" alive or really "human". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lK_QshS2EW8

    Inciting a war in another uninvolved country and driving it to ruins and in hands of radical Islami c zealots, just to give a cold-war rival "its vietnam"... perfectly okay and ethical! http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/BRZ110A.html

    Actually nuking millions of innocent civilians ... sure! Again non-americans and therefore not really "humans" or "alive". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_bombings_of_Hiroshima_and_Nagasaki

    But God forbid that someone aborts an unborn fetus they are not ready for. God forbid that scientists do valuable research that can actually cure diseases and reduce suffering! *Then* the esteemed leaders become so very "ethical" and "religious".

    You are both non-persuasive *and* stupid.

    And you are a hypocrite!