Pluripotent stem cells could promote cancer

The pluripotent stem cells (capable of generating all cell types of the body)  induced from the skin or the hair (called iPS in its acronym in English) could have mutations of genes associated with cancerous tumors , publishes the scientific journal Cell Death and Differentiation.

The study showed that in the process of cell reprogramming, iPS maintained or amplified the oncogens (altered genes and responsible for a normal cell becoming a malignant) and that give rise to cancer in humans.

Thanos Halazonetis Y Pier Giuseppe Pelicci , from the University of Geneva, examined genomes of cells before and after reprogramming. They found that the DNA mutated during the process, which could represent a risk factor in the future and lead to cancerous tissue.

Stem cells that come from the skin or hair, have been a long-awaited substitute, both for patients and doctors, to replace the controversial procedure of stem cells of embryonic origin.

The research was based on the analysis of obtaining iPS stem cells from mouse hair and fibroblast. The result was that both genome amplifications were found, suggesting that they had replicated the oncogenes related to the p53 gene.

This discovery is significant since the tendency of these stem cells to develop tumors could greatly limit their use, so it is reinforced that Embryonic stem cell research can not be abandoned .

Source: El País and La Tercera.


Video Medicine: 2018 Demystifying Medicine: Use of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) for regenerative medicine (March 2024).