By Janet McBride
LONDON
(Reuters) - PPL Therapeutics, the firm that cloned Dolly the sheep, revealed on
Friday it had succeeded in turning a cow's skin cell into a heart cell, in a breakthrough
that could curtail controversial research on human embryos.
News of the
findings, which may help scientists develop treatments for diseases like diabetes,
Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease, sent shares in the small, Scottish
firm over 6% higher in London to 169-3/4 pence.
"This is a big step forward,"
said Erling Refsum, a biotechnology analyst at Nomura Securities.
"These
were the first people to clone an animal, the first to change the genetic structure
of a cloned animal. Now they are the first to change one cell into another and
get around the real problem, which is the difficulty of sourcing stem cells."
In
the past, scientists have relied on embryonic stem cells--"master cells" that
can turn into any other type of cell--in their hunt for a treatment for degenerative
diseases. Adult stem cells may have less versatility.
Researchers' aim
has been to use the stem cells to develop nerve tissue, blood, heart muscle or
even brain cells, thereby creating a ready supply of perfect-match replacement
tissue, including transplant organs.
But the research and the "harvesting"
of stem cells from embryos has been condemned by religious and pro-life groups.
The Pope has spoken out about the dangers of pushing the boundaries of medical
research too far and called human embryo cloning "morally unacceptable".
PPL
said what was different and more ethically acceptable about its method, pioneered
by scientists at its US unit PPL Therapeutics Inc, was the fact it avoided the
need to introduce stem cells. PPL had managed to turn a cow's skin cells into
basic stem cells, then grow them into heart cells. "The results of this experiment
gives us confidence that the method we are developing as a source of stem cells
is working and I believe it will be equally applicable to humans," PPL Managing
Director Dr Ron James said.
He was due to announce the trial results formally
at a meeting of the British Fertility Society later on Friday, but will not reveal
full details for commercial reasons. |
