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A differentiated skin cell can be transformed into the equivalent of a person's own embryonic stem cell (NEJM JW Gen Med Dec 29 2008), a discovery honored with the Nobel Prize in 2012. Once a differentiated cell is converted into an induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell — an embryonic-like stem cell — it can be induced to turn into whatever cell type is desired. For example, myocytes created from iPS cells theoretically could be infused, find their way to the heart, and replace the function of myocytes killed by a myocardial infarction. Although such cell therapy already is succeeding in animals, creating new organs from iPS cells has been a daunting task. But in two remarkable reports, investigators show that it might be possible.
A team from…