Stem cells

Research On Fetal Tissue Draws Renewed Political, Scientific Scrutiny

11:26am September 30, 2015

by Rob Stein

Critics say research on fetal tissue is no longer needed to answer crucial medical questions. But National Institutes of Health officials and other scientists say alternatives don't yet measure up.

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It's now possible to edit the DNA in a human embryo. The next question is, should we?

British Scientists Seek Permission To Edit DNA In Human Embryos

1:09pm September 18, 2015

by Rob Stein

After Chinese scientists announced in April that they had edited the genes in human embryos, many researchers said it shouldn't be done. Scientists in London say they want to do it for research only.

Loki's Castle, the field of deep sea vents between Norway and Greenland, is home to sediments containing DNA from the newly discovered archaea.

Missing Link Microbes May Help Explain How Single Cells Became Us

7:55pm May 06, 2015

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Near a field of deep sea vents between Norway and Greenland, scientists discovered the DNA of microbes that seem to be primitive archaea, but with a lot more genes — typical of complicated creatures.

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Isabella Beukes, of Santa Rosa, Calif., has been legally blind for more than 40 years. An experimental treatment derived from embryonic stem cells seems to have enabled her now to see not just color but also some shapes.

Embryonic Stem Cells Restore Vision In Preliminary Human Test

11:39am October 17, 2014

by Rob Stein

Cells derived from embryos appear to have improved vision in more than half of the 18 patients who had become legally blind because of two progressive, currently incurable eye diseases.

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New research could be promising for infertile men. Scientists were able to make immature sperm cells from skin cells. Their next challenge is to make that sperm viable.

'Provocative' Research Turns Skin Cells Into Sperm

4:20pm May 02, 2014

by Rob Stein

Scientists were able to make immature sperm cells. If they can make the sperm viable, researchers could help men who thought they'd never have kids. But the findings also raise ethical questions.

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"Liver buds" grow in petri dishes. The rudimentary organs are about 5 mm wide, or half the height of a classic Lego block.

Scientists Grow A Simple, Human Liver In A Petri Dish

9:48am July 04, 2013

The tiny organs created from stem cells aren't complete, but they act like regular livers when transplanted into mice, Japanese scientists say. Still, it will be years before the synthetic organs could help people with liver problems, even if further research all works out as hoped.

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A scientist removes the nucleus from a human egg using a pipette. This is the first step to making personalized embryonic stem cells.

Scientists Clone Human Embryos To Make Stem Cells

11:57am May 16, 2013

The achievement is a long-sought step toward harnessing the potential power of such cells to treat diseases. But the discovery raises ethical concerns because it brings researchers closer to cloning humans.

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After President Obama overturned Bush-era policy restricting federal funding of embryonic stem cell research in 2009, Nebraska Right to Life led a protest of the research outside the University of Nebraska regents' meeting.

Cloning, Stem Cells Long Mired In Legislative Gridlock

11:53am May 16, 2013

by Julie Rovner

The news that scientists have successfully cloned a human embryo seems almost certain to rekindle a political fight that has raged, on and off, since the creation of Dolly the sheep. It's a fight that has, over the past decade and a half, produced a lot of heat and light and not a lot of policy.

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