A novel possible approach to the creation of genetically personalized human embryonic stem-like cell lines

A novel possible approach to the derivation of human embryonic stem (ES) cell's analogues, named tetraploid meiosis (TM) cells, derived from a prospective patient's or a senior's (PS) somatic cells is described. In this procedure, most of the resulting cells' mitochondrial DNA, if not all, is also from the PS's cells. The procedure involves several rounds of the following three steps, starting from an allogeneic human ES cell line: the creation of tetraploid ES cells by fusion of somatic cells from the prospective PS with the ES cells, the differentiation of these cells into tetraploid oogonia that give rise to diploid oocytes following meiosis, and the isolation of ES cells from parthenogenetic blastocysts, morula, 8-cell embryos, or 4-cell embryos derived from these oocytes. After sufficient repetition of this process using the prospective PS's somatic cells, the genetic contribution of the original allogeneic ES cells will be low enough not to trigger an immune response. Because this procedure avoids most challenging aspects of standard somatic cell nuclear transfer, it may be a promising way to generate immunocompatible ES cells in the numbers needed to meet likely future demand.