 |
 |
The Calgary Sun Monday, August 13, 2001 Skin cell types may boost cures By CP TORONTO -- Canadian scientists think they have found a new way to help patients recover from spinal cord injuries and Parkinson's disease with the discovery that at least four different cell types can be produced from human skin. Researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute have found that the second layer of skin, known as the dermis, can produce some cell types, called skin-derived precursors. The research is considered a breakthrough because it's the first to show that adult stem cells can produce cells that are different from the tissue they came from, said lead scientist Dr. Freda Miller, whose findings are to be published today in Nature Cell Biology. "Human skin is easily accessible tissue, requiring only a small biopsy," Miller said. "The cells proliferate and grow very well, which is unusual for adult stem cells, and they make quite a few different types of cells." The implications are potentially far-reaching, as skin-cell precursor transplantations would avoid the ethical concerns surrounding the use of embryonic stem cells. SOURCE: The Calgary Sun http://www.canoe.ca/CalgaryNews/cs.cs-08-13-0031.html * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn