By Neil Bowdler
Science reporter, BBC News
A Californian team say they have managed to convert human skin cells directly into functioning brain cells.
The scientists manipulated the process by which DNA is transcribed within foetal skin cells to create cells which behaved like neurons.
The technique had previously been demonstrated in mice, says the report in Nature.
It could be used for neurological research, and might conceivably be used to create brain cells for transplant.
Reprogrammed skin
The scientists used genetically modified viruses to introduce four different "transcription factors" into foetal skin cells. These transcription factors play a role in the "reading" of DNA and the encoding of proteins within the cell.
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more:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-13567321http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110526/full/news.2011.328.html
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