August 14 2008
Visit Nature Reports Stem Cells online.
Now available at http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0BU280EK
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THIS MONTH IN NATURE REPORTS STEM CELLS
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August newsletter: from human embryonic stem cells to induced pluripotent stem cells, with a stop for flies
This month, a founder of the field likens reprogramming technology to PCR; both create unlimited supplies of once hard-to-access material; Harvard plans to move the study of diseases into laboratory dishes across the world; an analysis on informed consent ponders how the ethical use of research materials can keep up with science; and finally, a trio of fruit fly papers reveals model systems ripe for harvesting.
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TOP STORIES
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James Thomson: shifts from embryonic stem cells to induced pluripotency
In a wide-ranging interview, the scientist who first derived human embryonic stem cells describes the road travelled and the road ahead
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B27M0EB
Ten diseases in a dish
Harvard has created an 'iPS core' dedicated to deriving, characterizing and distributing patient-specific lines to researchers across the world.
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B2w80Es
Informed consent and stem cell lines
Oversight committees face complicated decisions after an analysis questions whether lines approved for federal funding meet standards of informed consent
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B27N0EC
Related story: Consent issues restrict stem-cell use
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B1mS0EA
30 years: from IVF to stem cells
Ruth Deech, former chair of Britain's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, reflects on how the science that gave an infertile couple a baby has been extended to saving lives
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0BzxJ0EP
Big questions, big names, short summaries
A supplementary issue of Cell Research features abstracts from the Shanghai International Symposium on Stem Cell Research held in November 2007, which attracted many of the top leaders in the field (scroll down table of contents to see names and titles)
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B27O0ED
The promise of human induced pluripotent stem cells for research and therapy
In this essay, Shin-ichi Nishikawa, Robert Goldstein and Concepcion Nierras explore both potential applications of iPS cells and the obstacles to achieving those uses.
http://www.nature.com/nrm/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nrm2466.html
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ARTICLES KEYING OFF RECENT PUBLICATIONS
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Lessons from flies
Long geneticists' workhorse, the easily studied Drosophila also helps scientists dissect tissue-specific stem cell maintenance and function. Three recent papers are highlighted this month:
Flies point the way to studying stem cell niche maintenance
Multipotent somatic stem cells replenish the germ cell niche in Drosophila testes
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B27P0EE
Voog, J., D'Alterio, C. & Jones, L. Nature advance online publication, doi:10.1038/nature07173 (20 July 2008).
A fly in the gut
Stem cells in the fly hindgut mirror the stem cell niche in mammalian villi
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B27Q0EF
Takashima, S. et al. Nature advance online publication, doi:10.1038/nature07156 (16 July 2008).
A natural reprogramming system
The fly trachea is built from differentiated cells that revert to multipotency
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B27R0EG
Weaver, M. & Krasnow, M. A. Science doi:10.1126/science.1158712 (published online 31 July 2008).
Disease-specific cell lines, disease-preventing cell manipulation and more:
Nerve cells made from elderly patient's skin cells
Reprogrammed cells may offer insight into neurodegenerative disease
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B2Wy0ER
Dimos, J. T. et al. Science doi:10.1126/science.1158799 (published online 31 July 2008).
Ten diseases in a dish
Disease-specific cell lines will help the study and treatment of medical conditions
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B2w80Es
Park, I.-H. et al. Cell doi:10.1016/j.cell.2008.07.041 (published online 7 August 2008).
Building muscle
A technique to identify and purify muscle stem cells helps mice with muscular dystrophy
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B1EM0EO
Cerletti, M. et al. Cell 134, 37-47 (2008).
Packaging DNA for pluripotency
An RNAi screen reveals a surprising player
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B27S0EH
Fazzio, T. G., Huff, J. T. & Panning, B. Cell <b>134,</b> 162-174 (2008).
Spinal stem cells need not scar
Manipulating ependymal cells <i>in vivo</i> could aid recovery from spinal injuries
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B27T0EI
Meletis, K. et al. PLoS Biol. 6, e182; doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.0060182 (22 July 2008).
Embryonic stem cells step up to the platelet
Researchers develop an improved technique for culturing stem cell-derived blood platelets
http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/DM/y/emuS0Xztnp0JEp0B27U0EJ
Nishikii, M. et al. J. Exp. Med. doi: 10.1084/jem.20071482 (published online 28 July 2008).
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