Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Of mice and men: Creating a Chimera (Stem Cells)
From BBC News: UK scientists are seeking permission to place human nuclei into animal eggs in a bid to create stem cell lines.
Why do researchers believe the intermingling of species could be vital to science?
The mixing up and merging of species is not new to science: a multitude of creatures straddling the line between animal and human already exist in laboratories around the world.
But far from seeing their role as creators of freak-show fodder, scientists believe the creation of part-human part-animal creatures can help to study disease, advance areas such as fertility, and boost understanding of our basic biology.
These creatures are called chimeras (info), and are defined as organisms that contain at least two genetically different groups of cells originating from different organisms.
The above news report is continued at "Of mice and men: Creating a Chimera (Stem Cells)" and quotes Dr Stephen Minger (homepage), of King's College London.
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