Growing Nerve Cells

Science Central ^ | 03.16.06

[Larry Lucido]

I think you two need to part company now.

[Kaylee Frye]

We injected these hair follicle stem cells into the area where the nerve or the spinal cord is severed… [and] found that the nerve or spinal cord could be regenerated because we injected these hair follicle stem cells

Wow, that's simply incredible. From hair of all things. Makes sense though. How many hairs do I lose every time I brush my hair and yet they keep coming back (thank goodness or else I'd be bald).

[King Prout]

It's no fur, pelting me with so many puns all at once. It makes me bristle with anger.

(you shoulda know'd this was coming...)
[a-hem!]
keep your hair on!

the root cause of that barrage was the way you gave the interchange the shaft, dim-bulb!

[King Prout]

hoggin' yer turf, eh? can you toupee the weave of puns PH and I have already plugged into this thread?

I truly hope so, as all the jests I have left are all limp and greasy

[King Prout]

*grins*

[PatrickHenry]

I had assumed that your prior brush with me was sufficient to convince you, but now I must, as it were, wrestle you to the mat and implant this thought in your fuzzy brain -- you are a fringe player in this game. Thus far I have only been teasing. Does that shock you? No matter how you bob and weave, or even wiggle, the bald truth is that you cannot top this post!

[King Prout]

it would be a close shave were I to make such an attempt, but I do believe your last snippet of wit would come out a cut above. glad to have ironed that out - I was dyeing to see you untangle your puns once again. Neither upbraid me nor snarl at this concession - it is, I assure you, no play to beard you.

[King Prout]

plucky, ain't I?

[PatrickHenry]

As I comb through your recent offering, searching for a filament of meaning, it seems utterly threadbare. Indeed, you seem hare brained. Actually, you are growing cilia with each post, and I shall leave you stranded.

[Coleus]

like the frog that eats the lightning bug, it would be cool to see the mouse glow in the cat's abdomen.

[strategofr]

They better hurry up if they expect to get any hair from me!

[strategofr]

" Actually, you are growing cilia with each post"

LOL!

[strategofr]

"like the frog that eats the lightning bug, it would be cool to see the mouse glow in the cat's abdomen."

Never heard of that frog eating a lightning bug thing.

[King Prout]

I have shed all hope of victory in this battle

[Pharmer]

OK FReeper as a professional cell biologist and pharmacologist I am offering my opinion on this matter:

In all fairness, the discovery of green and yellow fluorescent protein (GFP and YFP) and the knowledge of how to transfect it into cells and into rodent models is the stuff of real Nobel prizes. The ability to to fluorescently tag proteins allows us to visually see their biological behavior using microscopic fluorescent imaging systems (both of which I am a known expert ;>) and we all know what we think as the MSM goes "experts tell us". But trust me, I know my shit it this area.)

In this area too many liberals are seeing this as "STEM CELL RESEARCH!!!!!!!!" and not for it really is... This technology allows us to track the development of the nervous system from zygote to adult but understand how various neurons form and how they truly effect our behavior

GFP is the the greatest tool for drug discovery since the use of tritium (3H, yes radioactive!!!!) labeled drugs. This stuff has many uses as our industry gene jockeys can tag this protein on receptor genes and make cells that don't normally show a drug receptor of interest but make that receptor glow!. We can then study through image analysis, the physiological effects of the drug/receptor interactions.

As for what that leads to... Maybe a cure for Alzheimer's, stroke, spinal cord injury, ALS.

[farlander]

LOL, I think you actually have to have a spine in a first place. It only works for repair - I doubt they could grow a whole new one...