ABSTRACT
Because of their pluripotency – i.e. their ability to give rise to most tissue cell types – human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) could be used to treat debilitating or fatal conditions. For example, it appears that hESCs can be used to grow nerve cells that may help to repair spinal injuries and restore function to paralyzed limbs,1,2 to grow heart muscle cells that can replace scar tissue after a heart attack,3 to make neurons that would secrete dopamine and control Parkinson’s disease4 or cells producing insulin to cure diabetes.5 It has also been proposed that hESCs may be able to regenerate bone marrow damaged by disease or radiation, to make blood cells genetically altered to resist specific infections such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or simply replace diseased blood cells.6
