Disease's in a Dish

Prior to 2006, stem cell research was an ethically challenging field of study. The only known obtainable undifferentiated cells were human embryos. To obtain a stem cell, meant aborting a life.  This all changed however when a Japanese scientist, Shinya Yamanaka discovered a new type of stem cell called the IPS or induced pluripotent stem cell. It is formed by injecting programmed genes into fibroblast skin cells.

Wendy Chung, a geneticist from NY, sampled skin from elderly women infected with ALS syndrome or Lou Gehrig's disease. Wendy then created IPS cells from the skin of the women. Using a pitri dish, she grew ALS infected motor neurons from the IPS cells! The next step is comparing the ALS motor neurons to  healthy ones in hopes of finding a cure.

This is a very exciting field of science. The discovery of IPS cells has opened endless possibilities in biology. It is interesting to think if one day they could grow entire organs outside the body using IPS cells and then transplant them.