The new type of stem cell developed by Japan's state-backed Riken institute and Harvard University is a scientific breakthrough that shows we can use a simple method to reprogram mature body cells into an immature state similar to cells in a fertilized egg.
The team's study on "stimulus-triggered acquisition of pluripotency," or STAP, was carefully reviewed before publication in the British science journal Nature. The findings are likely to have a significant impact on the field of biology, as well as on medicine and cancer research.
In experiments, the scientists soaked lymph corpuscles taken from 7-day-old mice into mildly acidic liquids for about 30 minutes. The few cells that survived were then cultured and transplanted into mice, where they developed into nerve and muscle tissue.