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UK researchers use reprogrammed adult skin cells to make stem cells that model genetic diseases
Researchers at the University of Cambridge, UK, have reported that human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can be used to model a range of inherited diseases such as liver disease from Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency.
The research, which used skin cells donated by three patients with Alpha-1 liver disease and donors with several other genetic conditions, was reported in The Journal of Clinical Investigation (JCI).
The iPS cells used in this study were generated by reprogramming adult skin cells back to a state in which their functional properties closely paralleled those of human embryonic stem cells. Using these cells may allow scientists to achieve research and therapeutic goals without the controversy and legal battles surrounding the use of embryonic stem cells.
“These data demonstrate, for the first time to our knowledge, that human iPS cells can be used to model a diverse range of inherited diseases in adult cells,” says the JCI report.
S. Tamir Rashid of the University of Cambridge was the lead author for the study.
