Important new step toward producing stem cells for human treatment

A team of Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) scientists has taken an important step toward producing induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells that are safe to transplant into patients to treat diseases.

Excitement over the ability of researchers to create this form of stem cell by inserting four genes into adults cells has thus far been tempered by the fact that the genes have been inserted using retroviruses, which have the potential to turn on cancer genes and trigger tumor growth.

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