“Our hope is to one day treat diseases like heart failure or Parkinson’s disease with drugs that help the heart and brain regenerate damaged areas from their own existing tissue cells.
“This process is much closer to the natural regeneration that happens in animals like newts and salamanders, which has long fascinated us.”
Previously, scientists had managed to reprogram cells but only by adding external genes to the cells.
Genetic engineering of human cells remains controversial and the Gladstone researchers believe their method is a more efficient and reliable method of creating new cells to replace damaged tissue.
“The ultimate goal in treating heart failure is a robust, reliable way for the heart to create new muscle cells,” said Dr Deepak Srivastava, a co- author of the Science paper.
“Reprogramming a patient’s own cells could provide the safest and most efficient way to regenerate dying or diseased heart muscle.”
In the brain cell study, neural stem cells made from mouse skin transformed into the three main types of brain cell, neurons, oligodendrocytes and astrocytes, when transplanted into mice.
Dr Yadong Huang, another of the researchers, said: “With their improved safety, these neural stem cells could one day be used for cell replacement therapy in neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease.
“In the future, we could even imagine treating patients with a drug cocktail that acts on the brain or spinal cord, rejuvenating cells in the brain in real time.”
@Agency report.
