A new study demonstrates for the first time that embryonic stem cells can be used to create functional immune system white blood cells. The work was published online in the journal Blood.
A team of scientists from Iowa, Taiwan, and Germany used embryonic stem cells containing the protein HOXB4 to engraft the bone marrow of mice whose immune systems had been destroyed by radiation. Only cells containing HOXB4 were able to engraft, rescue the mice, and produce necessary blood cells long term. These engrafted cells were shown ...