5 ms·
Differentiation of the cells. We can get stem cells from fat, blood, bone marrow etc. We can increase their lifespan (Hayflick limit) by lenghtening telomeres.
by 1996 7y ago
Differentiation of the cells. We can get stem cells from fat, blood, bone marrow etc. We can increase their lifespan (Hayflick limit) by lenghtening telomeres. Last time I checked we were starting to understand how to turn some cells pluripotent.
But we don't know how to reliably say to a cell "now please become a cartilage cell forever" (or please form a tooth etc)
When we know how to achieve that, the biotech revolution will truly begin
- suby 7y agoOut of curiosity, do you have an idea on what the thinking generally is in the field in regards to if / when we'll be able to treat someone using cartilage regeneration, or other organ / nerve / limb regenerations? Were people expecting the breakthroughs we've already made on the timescale that we've had them? I have a deep ignorance of the field, but from afar it seems like we're on the verge of some truly revolutionary technologies.
- carapace 7y agoDid you see "What Bodies Think About: Bioelectric Computation Outside the Nervous System"? https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18736698 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18736698
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- 1996 7y agoRegrowing teeth has been "coming very soon" for like 20 years. So I would take their predictions with a pinch of salt. Then again, we didn't understand methylation - we are starting to get that. I expect breakthrough about 5 years after we understand the pathways to differentiation and know how to do/undo methylation. See Aubrey de Grey Wilt idea- but take it with a pinch of salt too, as cells with short telomeres tend to do bad things and grow cancerous. Think about the opposite: infusions of stem cells turned young again (telomeres), then primed to differentiate into what we want (ex: knee: cartilage)