UK cell biologist Robert Edwards says he can see a time in the not-too-distant future when humans will be able to grow new body parts through the use of stem cell technology. And the doctor, acclaimed for the pioneering breakthrough allowing women to give birth to "test tube babies," is thinking beyond new hearts, livers, kidneys and other organs already in development. He notes that humans have the genes necessary to re-grow lost limbs.
Edwards and a colleague were responsible for the first in vitro fertilization birth--a woman named Louise Brown who turns 30 next month. And even at that time, says Edwards, scientists were able to see that we would make significant strides over the next 30 years. The big obstacle has been a lack of funds, notes Edwards, but now money is flowing into stem cell research at a furious pace, fueling advancements in the field.
- read the story in The Times
Related Articles:
Scientists grow new heart valves from stem cells
Stem cell researchers create tiny livers
U.S. hatches $265M regenerative medicine initiative
Genetic machinery remains for limb regeneration