Advance moves stem cell research forward

Scientists in California say they’ve made an important step forward in the race to make reprogrammed stem cells without problematic genes.

Shen Ding and colleagues at the Scripps Research Institute say they’ve developed a way to reprogram mouse cells to form stem cells using a combination of purified proteins and a chemical additive.

The finding, published online in the journal Cell Stem Cell, may help researchers get around a major drawback to the use of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells as a alternative to embryonic stem cells.

Previously, even the most advanced methods of generating iPS cells required the introduction of genetic material that increased the risk of cancer or other genetic mutations, the journal said Thursday in a release.

The finding represents a significant advance in generating iPS cells, and has several advantages over previous iPS cell methods Ding said in a statement.