PrairiePundit

San Diego Union-Tribune: A team of scientists led by Scripps Research Institute has pulled ahead in the race to develop embryonic-like stem cells that could be used for patient-specific therapies and models of disease, but that don't require destruction of an embryo. The Scripps team, led by Sheng Ding, transformed fully formed fibroblast cells – precursors to skin cells – into primitive, embryonic-like stem cells without using any dangerous genes or viruses, a component that hampered previous research. The results appeared online yesterday in the scientific journal Cell Stem Cell. Once they are embryonic-like, they can be coaxed into becoming many different cell types in the body, much the way human embryonic stem cells – the body's master cells – morph into the more than 200 types of cells in the body. This morphing ability is called pluripotency. The hope for embryonic and embryonic-like stem cells is that they can be used to study the development and progression o...

Charles Krauthammer: "If human embryonic stem cell research does not make you at least a little bit uncomfortable, you have not thought about it enough." -- James A. Thomson WASHINGTON -- A decade ago, Thomson was the first to isolate human embryonic stem cells. Last week, he (and Japan's Shinya Yamanaka) announced one of the great scientific breakthroughs since the discovery of DNA: an embryo-free way to produce genetically matched stem cells. Even a scientist who cares not a whit about the morality of embryo destruction will adopt this technique because it is so simple and powerful. The embryonic stem cell debate is over. Which allows a bit of reflection on the storm that has raged ever since the August 2001 announcement of President Bush's stem cell policy. The verdict is clear: Rarely has a president -- so vilified for a moral stance -- been so thoroughly vindicated. Why? Precisely because he took a moral stance. Precisely because, as Thomson puts...

News.com.au: WOMEN may be able to undergo a "natural" form of breast enlargement using their own stem cells and fat. The technique, pioneered in Japan, results in breasts that look and feel smoother than conventional cosmetic surgery using implants. Stem cells, which have the potential to change into any cells in the body, are found in embryos, but the most plentiful supply in adults is from body fat. When body fat is transferred to the breasts, the stem cells enable the fat to grow its own blood supply, thus becoming an integral part of the breast rather than a foreign object. Dozens of women in Japan have received the enlargements during trials. This month, German authorities gave approval to the process. Under EU rules, this means that the procedure is now legal throughout Europe, including Britain. ... Could I make a fat donation? This is certain to grow the stem cell debate in this country too.