A biotech company that is working toward the Jurassic Park-style cloning of woolly mammoths has announced that they have made a crucial breakthrough in producing elephant stem cells, a key step in recreating the furry pachyderms, a species that has been extinct for over four thousand years. According to a statementread more
We are all programmed to have strong reactions to the vivid color of the life-giving fluid that runs through our veins. For some, it is a morbid fascination that causes them to watch horror movies, but for others it evokes terror and can often have a deeply profound effect when witnessed; phobia of blood is very common and can cause fainting in those who are particularly sensitive.
Researchers believe that, in fact, this is a deep-rooted reaction that may once have saved our lives in primitive times:
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Research into regenerative medicine is an area where significant progress continues to be made, and the latest breakthrough has been heralded as a "major scientific discovery."
Two recent studies published on Wednesday in the journal Nature outline a ground-breaking new method of creating stem cells merely by dipping blood cells into acid.
Dr. Haruko Obokata at the Riken lab in Kobe, Japan, described how her team had "shocked" blood cells with acid and found that this triggered their transformation into stem cells. The new form of cells have been termed "STAP" (stimulus-triggered acquisition of pluripotency) cells.
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Now there’s REAL wisdom in wisdom teeth?the Japanese have learned how to make stem cells out of them (and they can be kept in the freezer until needed!) However, since stem cells are most valuable for the diseases that strike in old age, such as Parkinson’s, and because wisdom teeth are often not removed until later in life, many of us will safely carry them around in our gums until we need them, instead.
BBC News quotes researcher Hajime Ogushi as saying, “?We can avoid the ethical issues of stem cells because wisdom teeth are destined to be thrown away anyway. Also, we used teeth that had been extracted three years ago and had been preserved in a freezer. That means that it’s easy for us to stock this source of stem cells.”
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