Treating adult human skin cells with ribonucleic acid molecules is a reliable method for creating induced stem cells that have properties similar to embryonic stem cells, according to a study published on Thursday in the journal Cell Stem Cell, USA Today reports.
Stem cell research has proved controversial over recent years because it often involves the destruction of embryos. In the new technique, RNA molecules are engineered to overpower immune system defenses and convert the skin cells into stem cells, which can then be grown into specific types of tissues, such as muscle.
In 2006, a team of researchers at Kyoto University reported success with a similar strategy that used viruses to spur the transformation of adult skin cells into embryonic-like stem cells. However, that technique involved disrupting the DNA of the skin cells, which would expose any patients who received transplanted tissue to a risk of cancer.
The revised technique — studied by lead researcher Derrick Rossi of Children’s Hospital Boston and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and colleagues — treats skin cells with messenger RNA molecules (AP/New York Times, 9/30). According to USA Today, the new method is 40 to 100 times more productive than the original method.
NIH Director Francis Collins praised the new research but added a note of caution, the Washington Post reports. Collins said, “The new report provides a substantial advance. But this research in no way reduces the importance of comparing the resulting … cells to human embryonic stem cells.”
Collins added that previous research on the new method showed that cells altered by RNA molecules “retain some memory of their tissue of origin, which may have important implications for their use in therapeutics.” To address this question, he said, the RNA technique “must continue to be conducted side by side with human embryonic cell research”.
National Partnership for Women & Families.