Stem cells and organ transplantation

Stem cells form an area of biomedical research receiving broad attention in the scientific literature and the world media alike. This has been inspired by the notion that human embryonic stem cells have the unique property to form all cells in the human body, once they receive the proper signal. The control of this property in vitro would offer tremendous opportunities to develop treatments of diseases that cannot be cured today, especially in the area of organ transplantation where the aim is to replace damaged tissue, particularly in organs where capacity for repair is inherently low e.g. pancreas, heart, nervous system. .