Archive by category | stem cells

The ethics of self-organizing tissue

It becomes increasingly clear that stem cells are able to form remarkably complex structures in vitro, if they are handled right. In this month’s issue, two pieces raise the question of whether recent developments in methods for patterning embryonic stem cells in vitro raise potential ethical, regulatory or public perception concerns, or if they may do so in the future.  Read more

Contamination created controversial ‘acid-induced’ stem cells

Stem cells that were claimed to be created simply by exposing ordinary cells to stress were probably derived from embryonic stem cells, according to the latest investigation into an ongoing scientific scandal. How that contamination occurred, however, remains an open question.  Read more

Last remaining support for controversial stem-cell papers collapses

The retraction of two controversial papers which promised a simple way to create embryonic-like stem cells appears imminent today after the lead author unexpectedly gave her full consent. Haruko Obokata, of the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology in Kobe, Japan, had been the last obstacle to the retraction of both papers.  Read more

Genetic tests suggest STAP stem cells ‘never existed’

Reports of a new kind of stem cell, produced by simply stressing mature mouse cells, kicked up a storm of controversy soon after their publication in Nature on 30 January. Duplicated and manipulated images as well as plagiarism were found in the two papers, which led to a verdict of misconduct for the lead author, Haruko Obokata of the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology in Kobe, Japan. There have also been calls for a retraction (which, for at least one of the papers, looks increasingly likely). But the controversy has left open a key question: does the phenomenon, known as stimulus-triggered acquisition of pluripotency, or STAP, exist?  Read more

Human-rights court rules that evidence must support compassionate therapy

Patients do not have an automatic right to a compassionate therapy for which there is no scientific evidence of efficacy, according to a landmark ruling of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.  Read more