Scientists say they have developed an "easy and safe way" to create stem cells, which has generated the possibility to promote the development of new treatment for diseases, according to Xinhua.
The developments were published in the U.S. Journal Science, lead by Professor Deng Hongkui of Peking University and his team.
The technique involved a mixture of "small-molecule compounds to reprogram somatic cells to a pluripotent state with the ability to differentiate into any other type of cell in the body," according to Xinhua. Researchers said they developed "a whole new route" to pluripotent stem cells by "inducing a pluripotent state in mouse somatic cells with a combination of seven small-molecule compounds."
"Small molecules have advantages because they can be cell permeable, non-immunogenic, more cost-effective, and can be more easily synthesized, preserved, and standardized," the researchers wrote in their paper. "Moreover, their effects on inhibiting and activating the function of specific proteins are often reversible and can be finely tuned by varying the concentrations."
According to researchers, the cells they worked with can be produced from mouse somatic cells at a frequency up to 0.2 percent, with the help of the small molecules.
In order to test the cell's differentiation potential, the researchers injected the chemically induced pluripotent stem cells (CiPSCs) into immunodeficient mice. Unlike other methods, the mice generated from CiPSCs were fully recovered in about six months, including one mouse called QingQing.
"QingQing has been living for more than 100 days up to now. It develops well and it's lively and healthy. What's more, QingQing has already got its own 'babies' and they no longer need to worry about their health," Deng told Xinhua.
The researchers hope the findings will help regenerative medicine, and lead to new drugs and better treatment options for diseases.
"To date, the complete chemical reprogramming approach remains to be further improved to reprogram human somatic cells and ultimately meet the needs of regenerative medicine," they wrote.
