Huh!?
On a serious note, I hope we can grow some brains for some Liberals using this technique.
Posted on 04/24/2013 3:59:53 PM PDT by neverdem
In a serendipitous discovery, scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have found a way to turn bone marrow stem cells directly into brain cells.
Current techniques for turning patients' marrow cells into cells of some other desired type are relatively cumbersome, risky and effectively confined to the lab dish. The new finding points to the possibility of simpler and safer techniques. Cell therapies derived from patients' own cells are widely expected to be useful in treating spinal cord injuries, strokes and other conditions throughout the body, with little or no risk of immune rejection.
"These results highlight the potential of antibodies as versatile manipulators of cellular functions," said Richard A. Lerner, the Lita Annenberg Hazen Professor of Immunochemistry and institute professor in the Department of Cell and Molecular Biology at TSRI, and principal investigator for the new study. "This is a far cry from the way antibodies used to be thought of -- as molecules that were selected simply for binding and not function."
The researchers discovered the method, reported in the online Early Edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences the week of April 22, 2013, while looking for lab-grown antibodies that can activate a growth-stimulating receptor on marrow cells. One antibody turned out to activate the receptor in a way that induces marrow stem cells -- which normally develop into white blood cells -- to become neural progenitor cells, a type of almost-mature brain cell.
Nature's Toolkit
Natural antibodies are large, Y-shaped proteins produced by immune cells. Collectively, they are diverse enough to recognize about 100 billion distinct shapes on viruses, bacteria and other targets. Since the 1980s, molecular biologists have known how to produce antibodies in cell cultures in the laboratory. That has allowed them to start using this vast, target-gripping toolkit to...
(Excerpt) Read more at sciencedaily.com ...
Thinking of what would happen if you injected this into someone's shin ~ next time he got kicked he could holler "now that's smart".
FReepmail me if you want on or off my stem cell/regenerative medicine ping list or on or off my combined microbiology/immunology ping list.
Amazing times we live in.
bbbbbut... they’re not embryonic stem cells /sarc
bkmk
Someday we might even be able to grow a brain for each and every liberal in the country.Who said you can’t fix stupid?
If we stimulate the femur properly we can grow two brains for each of them, both right in their ass!~
Huh!?
On a serious note, I hope we can grow some brains for some Liberals using this technique.
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