Word: stemming
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...crux of that breakthrough is this: each of the newly created stem-cell lines is genetically identical to one of Hwang's patients. That means any new tissue derived from that patient's cell line can be injected into that individual without triggering an immune reaction. If researchers can figure out how to fix the original defect, they may someday be able to generate replacement tissue that is custom designed to treat the patient's condition. Or at least that's the dream. No one knows yet whether those stem cells can be safely used in people...
Many scientists were astonished by how far the South Koreans had come. Only 15 months ago, Hwang's group created a stir as the first--and so far the only--lab to generate human stem cells via SCNT. Back then it had to use 242 eggs before it was able to create a single, viable set of stem cells from a healthy woman. This time it was able to create 11 stem-cell lines using an average 17 eggs each. "The efficiency is exceptionally high--much higher than I would have thought possible," says Doug Melton, a stem-cell researcher...
...Berg, Melton and their American colleagues, there is a touch of envy blended with the praise. Stem-cell research in Asia--not just in South Korea but in China, Japan and Singapore as well--is rapidly outdistancing the work being done in the U.S., reflecting, in large part, real differences in government policy. South Korea, for example, recently banned the use of cloning techniques for the creation of babies but fully supports Hwang's work--to the tune of $2 million a year. By contrast, researchers in the U.S. who want to study human embryonic stem cells are restricted...
...veterinary scientist by training, Hwang says his pioneering work with human stem cells would not have been possible without an extensive animal-research program. Building on what he learned from his experiments on cows, pigs and ducks, Hwang developed his own assembly line of nearly two dozen steps to improve the efficiency of human stem-cell production. "I wanted to develop a unique technique, not just mimic and modify what others had done," he says...
...When the stem cells inside start growing out onto the underlying feeder cells, the researchers don't try to hurry the process. Most scientists working with embryos left over from in-vitro-fertilization treatments will use chemicals at this stage to separate the cells. "I think the less we manipulate the cells the better," Hwang says...