Why are human pluripotent stem cells important?
There are several reasons why the isolation of human pluripotent stem cells might lead to better treatment, even cures, of many diseases. At the most fundamental level, pluripotent stem cells could help us to understand the complex events that occur during normal human development. By identifying the mechanisms underlying routine cell differentiation we hope to understand how disease-causing aberrations occur. Another goal of this research would be the identification of the factors involved in the cellular decision-making process that results in cell specialization — why do some cells become heart cells, for example, while other cells become liver cells? We know that turning genes on and off is central to this process, but we do not know much about these “decision-making” genes or what turns them on or off. Some of our most serious medical conditions, such as cancer and birth defects, are due to abnormal cell differentiation and cell division. A better understanding of normal cell pro
