[ExI] Limb Regeneration

[The Avantguardian]

Here is some good news to cheer you all up:
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=regrowing-human-limbs

"Indeed, when we consider all that we have learned about wound healing
and regeneration from studies in various animal models, the surprising
conclusion is that we may be only a decade or two away from a day when
we can regenerate human body parts. The striking contrast between the
behavior of fibroblasts in directing the regeneration response in
salamanders versus the fibrotic response leading to scarring in mammals
suggests that the road to successful regeneration is lined with these
cells. Equally encouraging is the recent discovery by Howard Y. Chang
and John L. Rinn of Stanford University that adult human fibroblasts,
like salamander fibroblasts, retain a memory of the spatial coordinate
system used to establish the body plan early in the embryo’s
development. Given that such positional information is re­-quired for
regeneration in salamanders, its existence in human fibroblasts
enhances the feasibility of tapping into and activating developmental
programs necessary for regeneration.

Now, as we watch a salamander grow back an arm, we are no longer quite
as mystified by how it happens. Soon humans might be able to harness
this truly awesome ability ourselves, replacing damaged and diseased
body parts at will, perhaps indefinitely."


Stuart LaForge
alt email: stuart"AT"ucla.edu

"Life is the sum of all your choices."  
Albert Camus


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