Breakthrough in cell reprogramming

What's the news: Scientists have figured out a new and better way to reprogram adult cells to stem cells.

Why should we believe it: This news is based on a study published earlier this month by scientists from Australia. The scientists identified a new method of turning back the clock for individual cells, called transient-naive-treatment (TNT). This method not only reverts adult cells to stem cells, but also resets the epigenetic state of the cell to a proper youthful state, something not previously possible.

Why this is a big deal: The first and until now only method to reprogram adult cells into stem cells was discovered in the mid-2000s. It went on to win its discoverer, Shinya Yamanaka, the Nobel Prize in medicine in 2006.

The Yamanaka approach had huge therapeutic promise - take any cell from the body, revert it to an earlier state, and create any other tissue in the body. But there was a problem.

Even though the Yamanaka approach reset an adult cell to a stem cell, the epigenetic state of the adult cell persisted to an extent. This created problems with how these stem cells (and the derived adult cells) behaved. For example, it's a possible reason why stem-cell derived cells tend to die much sooner than other cells.

So what's next: This new discovery could drive a revolution in regenerative cell therapies — induced stem cells that create adult cells that behave entirely like normal cells.

Beyond that, it's worth remembering that partial Yamanaka reprogramming has produced some of the most significant organ rejuvenations we have seen to date. It's possible that this new TNT approach will also produce significant new rejuvenation strategies, ones we cannot even imagine today.