Human embryonic stem cells and therapeutic cloning.
The remarkable potential of embryonic stem (ES) cells is their ability to develop into many different cell types. ES cells make it possible to treat patients by transplanting specialized healthy cells derived from them to repair damaged and diseased cells or tissues, known as "stem cell therapy". However, the issue of immunocompatibility is one of considerable significance in ES cell transplantation. One approach to overcome transplant rejection of human ES (hES) cells is to derive hES cells from nuclear transfer of the patient's own cells. This concept is known as "therapeutic cloning". In this review, we describe the derivations of ES cells and cloned ES cells by somatic cell nuclear transfer, and their potential applications in transplantation medicine.
Hwang
Woo Suk
WS
Department of Theriogenology and Biotechnology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea. hwangws@snu.ac.kr
Lee
Byeong Chun
BC
Lee
Chang Kyu
CK
Kang
Sung Keun
SK
D000818:Animals; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D019976:Cloning, Organism / Q000379:methods*; D046149:Embryo Culture Techniques; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian / Q000166:cytology; D006801:Humans; D039904:Pluripotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000379:methods*