Isn’t this great? Here’s hoping we’ll see something useful out of it:
ScienceDaily (Mar. 3, 2011) — For the first time, scientists discovered that a specific type of human cell, generated from stem cells and transplanted into spinal cord injured rats, provide tremendous benefit, not only repairing damage to the nervous system but helping the animals regain locomotor function as well.
The study, published March 2 in the journal PLoS ONE, focuses on human astrocytes — the major support cells in the central nervous system — and indicates that transplantation of these cells represents a potential new avenue for the treatment of spinal cord injuries and other central nervous system disorders.
Of particular interest to me… several months ago I read an account where researchers in Britain had (re)programmed stem cells to grow teeth (in mice). The more I study stem cells the more I am convinced that they are in essence organic Von Neumann Machines, organic nanites, capable of both repair and reproduction.