Hazel Tang A science writer with data background and an interest in the current affair, culture, and arts; a no-med from an (almost) all-med family. Follow on Twitter.
A Japanese woman in her forties is believed to be the first in the World to have her cornea repaired with induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Announced at a press conference on 29 August, Dr. Kohji Nishida, an ophthalmologist from Osaka University, Japan said his research team reprogrammed adult skin cells from a donor into embryonic
These cells were used on a wom
With the success, Dr. Nishida believed more patients with damaged or cornea-related diseases could benefit in the near future as they could be treated using tissues from deceased donors. This will also elevate the pressure on the present transplant wait-lists.
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
The iPSC technology was pioneered by Japanese stem-cell biologist Shinya Yamanaka at Kyoto University in 2006. His discovery and research work were subsequently awarded the Nobel Prize in 2012 along with English developmental biologist Sir John Gurdon.
At its core, iPSC is the introduction of “reprogramming factors” or proteins that manage the rate of genetic material transcription from DNA to RNA through the binding of various DNA sequences, into adult cells so that they become an embryonic-like pluripotent state which has the capability to be developed into unlimited types of human cells for therapeutic purposes.
Thus far, researchers have been using this form of reprogram
AI and initiatives from the Japanese government
Although regenerative medicine driven by iPSC is in the limelight, only research teams with relevant knowledge and equipped laboratory can duly perform the procedure at high quality fit for human use. As such, the Japanese government
According to Dr. Masayo Takahashi, Project Leader, Laboratory for Retinal Regeneration, RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology, the AI will master the technique of iPSC from different experienced researchers via deep learning (DL). The lessons
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A science writer with data background and an interest in the current affair, culture,