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Updated: May 31, 2026

Kinetic Measurement and Real Time Visualization of Somatic Reprogramming
Published on: July 30, 2016
Primer and interviews: promises and realities of induced pluripotent stem cells
1Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, 401 MREB, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84132, USA. jkiefer@neuro.utah.edu
Abstract:
In 2006, Yamanaka's group announced they had discovered the proverbial "fountain of youth" for human cells, forever changing the field of stem cell research. After misexpressing within them a cocktail of four genes, adult somatic cells revert into an embryonic stem cell (ESC)-like state. These so-called induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can differentiate into a wide variety of cell types, seemingly bypassing the need for politically charged ESCs. However, iPSCs differ from ESCs in potentially deleterious ways, precluding their use in regenerative medicine. In this primer and adjoining discussion with iPSC biologists William Lowry, PhD, and Clive Svendsen, PhD, we explore these issues as well how iPSCs promise to contribute to the understanding of developmental biology and the etiology, and treatment, of human diseases.
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