A human heart cell that was chemically reprogrammed from a human skin cell. Credit: Nan Cao, PhD, Gladstone Institutes
Breakthrough 1st purely chemical cellular reprogramming, changing a cell’s identity without adding external genes. The research lays the groundwork for one day being able to regenerate lost or damaged cells with pharmaceutical drugs.
This discovery offers a more efficient and reliable method to reprogram cells and avoids medical concerns surrounding genetic engineering. “This method brings us closer to being able to generate new cells at the site of injury in patients,” said Sheng Ding, PhD. “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...
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