stemcellonline.info

Deepak Srivastava and Kathryn N. Ivey
The use of stem cells to generate replacement cells for damaged heart muscle, valves, vessels and conduction cells holds great potential. Recent identification of multipotent progenitor cells in the heart and improved understanding of developmental processes relevant to pluripotent embryonic stem cells may facilitate the generation of specific types of […]

Claudio Bordignon
For decades, transplantation of haematopoietic stem cells — either unmodified, or genetically modified to correct genetic disorders — has been used to treat disorders of the blood and immune systems. The present challenge is to reduce the risk of such transplants and increase the number of patients who can safely access this treatment. In […]

David T. Scadden
Stem-cell populations are established in ‘niches’ — specific anatomic locations that regulate how they participate in tissue generation, maintenance and repair. The niche saves stem cells from depletion, while protecting the host from over-exuberant stem-cell proliferation. It constitutes a basic unit of tissue physiology, integrating signals that mediate the balanced response of stem […]

Thomas A. Rando
Adult stem cells reside in most mammalian tissues, but the extent to which they contribute to normal homeostasis and repair varies widely. There is an overall decline in tissue regenerative potential with age, and the question arises as to whether this is due to the intrinsic ageing of stem cells or, rather, to […]

Alysson R. Muotri and Fred H. Gage
The production of specialized differentiated neurons derived from stem cells has been proposed as a revolutionary technology for regenerative medicine. However, few examples of specific neuronal cell differentiation have been described so far. Although stem-cell tissue replacement might be seemingly straightforward in other cases, the high degree of complexity […]

Olle Lindvall and Zaal Kokaia
Many common neurological disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease, stroke and multiple sclerosis, are caused by a loss of neurons and glial cells. In recent years, neurons and glia have been generated successfully from stem cells in culture, fuelling efforts to develop stem-cell-based transplantation therapies for human patients. More recently, efforts have […]

Konrad Hochedlinger and Rudolf Jaenisch
The cloning of mammals from differentiated donor cells has refuted the old dogma that development is an irreversible process. It has demonstrated that the oocyte can reprogramme an adult nucleus into an embryonic state that can direct development of a new organism. The prospect of deriving patient-specific embryonic stem cells by […]

Natalie DeWitt
More than 30 years ago, neurologist Oliver Sacks wrote of the Parkinson’s drug l-dopa: “It is impossible to avoid the feeling that here, over and above all legitimate enthusiasms, there is this special enthusiasm, this mysticism, of a magical sort.”
It is striking how aptly these words describe the current enchantment with stem cells. Now, […]

Austin Smith
Stem-cell biology is in a phase of dynamic expansion and is forming connections with a broad range of basic and applied disciplines. The field is simultaneously exposed to public and political scrutiny. A common language in the stem-cell community is an important tool for coherent exposition to these diverse audiences, not least because certain […]

Sean J. Morrison and Judith Kimble
Much has been made of the idea that asymmetric cell division is a defining characteristic of stem cells that enables them to simultaneously perpetuate themselves (self-renew) and generate differentiated progeny. Yet many stem cells can divide symmetrically, particularly when they are expanding in number during development or after injury. Thus, […]