Open Questions: Stem Cells

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See also: Cloning -- Regenerative medicine

It's probably the single most important area, if we're going to ever understand how our brains got wired: if we don't understand how stem cells work, we'll never understand complex biology beyond single cell organisms.
J. Craig Venter

Introduction

Adult stem cells

Transdifferentiation

Stem cells from cloning

Stem cells from reprogramming

Stem cells from parthenogenesis

Stem cells and cancer

Stem cell therapy

Recommended references: Web sites

Recommended references: Magazine/journal articles

Recommended references: Books

Introduction

Recommended references: Web sites

Site indexes

ISSCR Stem Cell Sites of Interest: Links provided by the International Society for Stem Cell Research, especially of interest to professionals, but including general resources, stem cell fundamentals, and stem cell books.
Yahoo Stem Cell Research Links: Annotated list of links.
Yahoo News Full Coverage: Stem Cell Research: Links to recent news stories from various sources. Also includes links to sites dealing with stem cell research.
Galaxy: Stem Cells: Categorized site directory. Entries usually include descriptive annotations.
Galaxy: Stem Cell Research: Categorized site directory. Entries usually include descriptive annotations.
NIH Stem Cell Information: Contains links to news stories, press releases, and other information about stem cells.

Sites with general resources

International Society for Stem Cell Research: The ISSCR "is an independent, nonprofit organization established to promote and foster the exchange and dissemination of information and ideas relating to stem cells, to encourage the general field of research involving stem cells and to promote professional and public education in all areas of stem cell research and application." Of particular interest on the site are their pages on stem cell science, including a directory of resources, information for scientists, frequently-asked questions and answers, and external links.
New Scientist Special Report: Cloning and Stem Cells: Good collection of news articles on cloning and stem cells.
Stem Cell Information: A Web site maintained by the U. S. National Institutes of Health with a variety of information on stem cell research. Resources include stem cell basics (a good tutorial), frequently asked questions, a 2001 report on stem cells, information on stem cells and disease, a glossary, and many links to external resources.
Genes & Stem Cells: Good collection of resources on the topic -- external links, magazine articles, and books.
Nature: Focus on Stem Cells: Collection of articles, papers, and other materials from Nature related to stem cells.
Institute for Stem Cell Research: A research institute at the University of Edinburgh (Scotland). Site contains a good overview of the topic: About Stem Cells.
Stem Cells: Professional research journal of "cell differentiation and proliferation".
Stem Cells and Cloning: A brief, elementary overview from the British Royal Society. There's also an even briefer page on the subject here, with links to other reports, mostly on the related political issues.

Surveys, overviews, tutorials

Stem Cells: A Primer: Good overview information on stem cells, from the National Institutes of Health.
Stem Cells: Scientific Progress and Future Research Directions: An extensive report, from the National Institutes of Health. Except for the main page, the information is in PDF format.
FAQ: What's Up With Stem Cells?: June 2005 article from Wired News, presenting lots of basic information on stem cells, in question-answer form.
Stem Cells (ClearlyExplained.com): Overview in several parts by Richard Conan-Davies.
Potent Alternative: Reverse-engineered human stem cells may leapfrog the embryonic kind: Brief February 2008 Scientific American article about induced pluripotent stem cells.
Can Adult Stem Cells Do It All?: June 2007 Scientific American In Focus article, subtitled "Scientists may have turned mouse skin cells into embryolike stem cells, but prior claims for the power of adult cells have yet to stand the test of time."
Sight for Sore Eyes: March 2007 Scientific American News Scan article about stem cell therapies for repairing photoreceptor cells in the retina.
A Stroke for Stem Cells: January 2007 Scientific American In Focus article, subtitled "The brain becomes a target in stem cell clinical trials."
The World's First Neural Stem Cell Transplant: December 2006 Scientific American In Focus article, subtitled "In the coming decades this work could lead to treatments for neurodegenerative disorders that affect millions."
Blastomere Blowup: October 2006 Scientific American In Focus article, subtitled "A novel way to harvest stem cells intrigues and inflames."
Making Stem Cells on Demand: June 2005 Scientific American sidebar, subtitled "Changing muscle into bone and regrowing organs could be the fruits of work on 'dedifferentiation'."
Mother of All Cells: June 2005 Scientific American sidebar, subtitled "Scientists expect enormous benefits for humankind from the surge of research on embryonic stem cells. But it could take a generation or two before the full impact is felt."
Repair Workers Within: June 2005 Scientific American sidebar, subtitled "Adult stem cells may escape the ethical controversies of their embryonic counterparts, but as Christine Soares notes, their practical clinical value is far more murky."
A Boost for Broken Hearts?: June 2005 article from Business Week, discussing several types of stem cells and indications that some may be able to repair cardiac damage.
Costly Cloning Isn't a Cure-All: December 2004 article from Wired about the hurdles that must be jumped to obtain stem cells for therapeutic use by cloning.
Stem Cell Research: Transcript of an August 2001 radio broadcase featuring Australian stem cell expert Perry Bartlett, discussing the discovery of stem cells in the central nervous system which offer the possibility of treating brain damage and can even be turned into muscle cells.
The Child Within: June 2002 news article from Scientific American, subtitled "Stem cells from adults may not be so useful after all".
Stem Cell Showstopper?: December, 2001 news article from Scientific American, subtitled "Without Cloning, They Aren't Likely To Work".
Cloning Around with Stem Cells: June 2001 article containing basic information on stem cell research, comments from several researchers, and discussion of related political controversy.
No Stemming the Tide: August 16, 2001 news/overview article from Nature on several recent advances in isolating and culturing different types of stem cells.
Scientists Find 'Wild Card' Stem Cells in Bone Marrow: May 4, 2001 news article from Scientific American, about stem cells in bone marrow that can develop into a number of tissue types.
Human stem cells improve rat memory: May 2001 news article about improvements to the memory of aged rats after transplantation of human neural stem cells.
Fat useful for tissue engineering: April 2001 news article about using stem cells from fat tissue to grow bone, muscle, and cartilage.
Biological Alchemy: Brief February 2001 article from Scientific American on new discoveries and open questions in stem cell research.
Hope for Restoring Sight: September 2000 Scientific American news article about attempts to transplant stem cells in order to help regenerate damaged retinas.
Mother Nature's Menders: June 2000 survey article from Scientific American Presents on stem cells and potential medical benefits.
Bone marrow can produce liver cells: June 2000 news article about growing human liver cells from stem cells in bone marrow.
Human nerve cells grown from scratch: April 2000 news article about growing human nerve cells from embryonic stem cells.
Stem cells help spinal cord damage: November 1999 news article the ability of mouse embryonic stem cells to repair damaged rat spinal cords.
Stem Cells Come of Age: Brief July 1999 overview article from Scientific American.
Dolly's Legacy: June 1999 article from Scientific American Explore. "Nuclear transfer--used to clone Dolly and now owned by Geron--may help scientists develop more potent stem-cell therapies."
Scientists succeed in culturing human omnipotent cells: November 1998 news article about laboratory culturing of omniponent human stem cells.
Culturing New Life: Brief June 1998 article from Scientific American on the culturing of stem cells for applications in regenerative medicine.

Recommended references: Magazine/journal articles

Stem Cells: The Real Culprits in Cancer?
Michael F. Clarke; Michael W. Becker
Scientific American, July 2006
The Future of Stem Cells
Clive Cookson; John Rennie; Christine Soares; Richard Gardner; Tim Watson; Patti Waldmeir; Gary Stix
Scientific American, July 2005
The Stem Cell Challenge
Robert Lanza; Nadia Rosenthal
Scientific American, June 2004, pp
Adult Stem Cells
Stephen S. Hall
Technology Review, November 2001, pp. 42-49: Adult stem cells are found in many types of body tissue. In comparison to embryonic stem cells, each adult stem cell is capable of developing into only a very limited number of tissue types. But that may be enough for many therapeutic applications.
Mending a Broken Heart
Damaris Christensen
Science News, January 13, 2001, pp. 30-31: Stem cells from skeletal muscle may help treat heart tissue damaged by disease or heart attacks.
[References]
Human Embryonic Stem-Cell Research: Science and Ethics
Shirley J. Wright
American Scientist, July-August 1999, pp. 352-361: Embryonic stem cells are cells from embryos that are capable of developing into almost any type of body cell. Research on such cells may make it possible for humans to regrow damaged or diseased tissue.
New Nerve Cells for the Adult Brain
Gerd Kempermann; Fred H. Gage
Scientific American, May 1999, pp. 48-53: It has been discovered that, contrary to previous belief, new neurons can develop in the adult human brain to a limited extent, at least in the hippocampus. This means that brains do contain stem cells which can develop into neurons, and it may be possible to stimulate this action in order to counteract damage to the brain caused by injury or degenerative disease.
Embryonic Stem Cells for Medicine
Roger A. Pedersen
Scientific American, April 1999, pp. 68-73: Human embryonic stem cells were first grown in a culture only in 1998. Much research remains to be done before it will actually be practical to grows specific types of body tissue from such cells.
The Troubled Hunt for the Ultimate Cell
Antonio Regalado
Technology Review, July/August 1998, pp. 34-41: Human embryonic stem cells have the capability of developing into any type of cell in the body. Discovering how to utilize such cells could revolutionize the fields of regenerative medicine and organ transplantation.
Ontogeny Recapitulated
Gary Taubes
Discover, May 1998, pp. 66-72: The ability of embryo cells to develop into the parts of an adult animal is controlled by the sequence in which genes are turned on. Learning how this works should make it possible to grow tissues and complete organs artificially.
The Stem Cell
David W. Golde
Scientific American, December 1991, pp. 86-93: Stem cells have no specific function of their own, but are capable of differentiating into any type of body cell. Every type of cell in human blood can develop from just one type of cell -- the hematopoietic stem cell.

Recommended references: Books

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