MOST of the excitement surrounding stem cells has been over their potential for treating diseases directly. Now stem cells obtained from human embryos with genetic defects are opening up a new way of studying inherited diseases and testing potential treatments.
At a meeting of the International Society for Stem Cell Research in Boston last week, two groups revealed that they have obtained such stem cells. One team, at the Reproductive Genetics Institute in Chicago, has created 13 embryonic stem cell lines from human embryos with different genetic diseases, including fragile X, beta thalassaemia and Becker muscular dystrophy. The cell lines…
