Importantly, such information would enable scientists to grow embryonic and adult stem cells more efficiently in the laboratory. Up to
Stem cells are unspecialized. One of the fundamental properties of a stem cell is that it does not have any tissue-specific structures that allow it to perform specialized functions. |
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It does not detect genetic mutations in the cells. Determining whether the cells can be subcultured after freezing, thawing, and replating.
testing whether the human embryonic stem cells are pluripotent by 1) allowing the cells to differentiate spontaneously in cell culture; 2) manipulating the cells so they will differentiate to form specific cell types; or 3) injecting the cells into an immunosuppressed mouse to test for the formation of a benign tumor called a teratoma. |  |
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stem cells |
It is thought that PD may be the first disease to be amenable to treatment using stem cell transplantation. Factors that support this notion include the knowledge of the specific cell type (DA neurons) needed to relieve the symptoms of the disease. In addition, several laboratories have been successful in developing methods to induce embryonic stem cells to differentiate into cells with many of the functions of DA neurons. |
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 | Human embryonic stem cells are derived from the inner cell mass of a four- or five-day-old blastocyst. Human embryonic germ cells, in contrast, are derived from a five- to ten-week-old fetus. |
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