Scientists Heralding Stem Cell Development

By Marjorie McIntyre

A BREAKTHROUGH in stem cell technology is expected to speed vital drug development and help reduce the number of animals used in laboratory research.

A team of scientists from Durham University and the North-East Stem Cell Institute (Nesci) has designed, developed and tested equipment to induce stem cells to transform into other forms of tissue.

Scientists said the newmolecules, called EC23 and EC19, are far more stable than natural molecules.

Significantly, the EC23molecule was found to be particularly effective at producing nerve cells, which can be used in tests for drugs for brain disorders such as Alzheimer?s and Parkinson?s disease.

EC19 is particularly effective at producing epithelial cells, which line the inner and outer surfaces of the body.

Stem cells have the ability to renew other cells in the body. One of the challenges facing scientists is to find out how they can be reprogrammed to become different tissue types.

The scientific team includes synthetic chemists Dr Andrew Whiting and Professor Todd Marder, stem cell biologist Dr Stefan Przyborski and their research groups at Durham University, who are all members of Nesci.

Dr Przyborski said: ?The key thing about these synthetic molecules is that they remain stable and are exactly the same every time you use them, ensuring more reliable scientific experiments. Because the results will bemore scientifically robust, this will accelerate drug development using human stem cell-derived tissues and potentially reduce the number of animals used in such research. ? Dr Whiting said: ?We have set out tomake stablemimics of natural compounds which control cell development, but in this case, not only have we uncovered a compound which is stable and does what the natural system does, but actually seems to be better as well. It is a real bonus. ?

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