Deontic" redirects here. For the linguistic term, see Linguistic modality.

Deontological ethics or deontology is the normative ethical position that judges the morality of an
action based on the action's adherence to a rule or rules. [1] It is sometimes described as "duty" or
"obligation" or "rule"-based ethics, because rules "bind you to your duty." [2] Deontological ethics is
commonly contrasted to consequentialism,[3] virtue ethics, and pragmatic ethics. In this terminology action
is more important than the consequences.
Immanuel Kant's theory of ethics is considered deontological for several different reasons. [4][5] First, Kant
argues that to act in the morally right way, people must act from duty (deon).[6] Second, Kant argued that it
was not the consequences of actions that make them right or wrong but the motives of the person who
carries out the action.
Kant's argument that to act in the morally right way one must act purely from duty begins with an
argument that the highest good must be both good in itself and good without qualification. [7] Something is
"good in itself" when it is intrinsically good, and "good without qualification", when the addition of that thing
never makes a situation ethically worse. Kant then argues that those things that are usually thought to be
good, such as intelligence, perseverance and pleasure, fail to be either intrinsically good or good without
qualification. Pleasure, for example, appears not to be good without qualification, because when people
take pleasure in watching someone suffering, this seems to make the situation ethically worse. He
concludes that there is only one thing that is truly good:
Nothing in the worldindeed nothing even beyond the worldcan possibly be conceived which could be
called good without qualification except a good will.[7]
Kant then argues that the consequences of an act of willing cannot be used to determine that the person
has a good will; good consequences could arise by accident from an action that was motivated by a
desire to cause harm to an innocent person, and bad consequences could arise from an action that was
well-motivated. Instead, he claims, a person has a good will when he 'acts out of respect for the moral
law'.[7] People 'act out of respect for the moral law' when they act in some way because they have a duty
to do so. So, the only thing that is truly good in itself is a good will, and a good will is only good when the
willer chooses to do something because it is that person's duty, i.e. out of "respect" for the law. He defines
respect as "the concept of a worth which thwarts my self-love." [8]
Kant's three significant formulations of the categorical imperative are:

Act only according to that maxim by which you can also will that it would become a universal law.

Act in such a way that you always treat humanity, whether in your own person or in the person of
any other, never simply as a means, but always at the same time as an end.

Every rational being must so act as if he were through his maxim always a legislating member in
a universal kingdom of ends.

Moral absolutism[edit]

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Some deontologists are moral absolutists, believing that certain actions are absolutely right or wrong,
regardless of the intentions behind them as well as the consequences. Immanuel Kant, for example,
argued that the only absolutely good thing is a good will, and so the single determining factor of whether
an action is morally right is the will, or motive of the person doing it. If they are acting on a bad maxim,
e.g. "I will lie", then their action is wrong, even if some good consequences come of it. Non-absolutist
deontologists, such as W. D. Ross, hold that the consequences of an action such as lying may sometimes
make lying the right thing to do. Jonathan Baron and Mark Spranca use the term "protected values" when
referring to values governed by deontological rules.

Divine command theory[edit]

Main article: Divine command theory
Although not all deontologists are religious, some believe in the 'divine command theory'. The divine
command theory is a cluster of related theories that state that an action is right if God has decreed that it
is right.[9] William of Ockham, Ren Descartes and eighteenth-century Calvinists all accepted versions of
this moral theory, according to Ralph Cudworth, as they all held that moral obligations arise from God's
commands.[10] The Divine Command Theory is a form of deontology because, according to it, the rightness
of any action depends upon that action being performed because it is a duty, not because of any good
consequences arising from that action. If God commands people not to work on Sabbath, then people act
rightly if they do not work on Sabbath because God has commanded that they do not do so. If they do not
work on Sabbath because they are lazy, then their action is not truly speaking "right", even though the
actual physical action performed is the same. If God commands not to covet a neighbour's goods, this
theory holds that it would be immoral to do so, even if coveting provides the beneficial outcome of a drive
to succeed or do well.

Contemporary deontology[edit]
Contemporary deontologists include Thomas Nagel, Thomas Scanlon, Roger Scruton and Frances
Kamm.
Frances Kamm's "Principle of Permissible Harm" is an effort to derive a deontological constraint which
coheres with our considered case judgments while also relying heavily on Kant's categorical imperative.
[11]

The Principle states that one may harm in order to save more if and only if the harm is an effect or an

aspect of the greater good itself. This principle is meant to address what Kamm feels are most people's
considered case judgments, many of which involve deontological intuitions. For instance, Kant argues
that we believe it would be impermissible to kill one person to harvest his organs in order to save the lives
of five others. Yet, we think it is morally permissible to divert a runaway trolley that would otherwise kill
five innocent and immobile people onto a side track where one innocent and immobile person will be
killed. Kamm believes the Principle of Permissible Harm explains the moral difference between these and
other cases, and more importantly expresses a constraint telling us exactly when we may not act to bring
about good endssuch as in the organ harvesting case. In 2007, Kamm published a book that presents

new theory that incorporates aspects of her "Principle of Permissible Harm", the "Doctrine of Productive
Purity".[12] Like the "Principle of Permissible Harm", the "Doctrine of Productive Purity" is an attempt to
provide a deontological prescription for determining the circumstances in which people are permitted to
act in a way that harms others.
Attempts have been made to reconcile deontology with virtue-based ethics and consequentialism. Iain
King's 2008 book "How to Make Good Decisions and Be Right All the Time" uses quasi-realism and a
modified form of utilitarianism to develop deontological principles which are compatible with ethics based
on virtues and consequences.[13] King develops a hierarchy of principles to link his meta-ethics, which are
more inclined towards consequentialism, with the deontological conclusions he presents in his book.

Stem cells are undifferentiated biological cells that can differentiate into specialized cells and
can divide (through mitosis) to produce more stem cells. They are found in multicellular organisms.
Inmammals, there are two broad types of stem cells: embryonic stem cells, which are isolated from
the inner cell mass of blastocysts, and adult stem cells, which are found in various tissues.
In adultorganisms, stem cells and progenitor cells act as a repair system for the body, replenishing adult
tissues. In a developing embryo, stem cells can differentiate into all the specialized cellsectoderm,
endoderm and mesoderm (see induced pluripotent stem cells)but also maintain the normal turnover of
regenerative organs, such as blood, skin, or intestinal tissues.
There are three known accessible sources of autologous adult stem cells in humans:
1. Bone marrow, which requires extraction by harvesting, that is, drilling into bone (typically
the femur or iliac crest),
2. Adipose tissue (lipid cells), which requires extraction by liposuction, and
3. Blood, which requires extraction through apheresis, wherein blood is drawn from the donor
(similar to a blood donation), and passed through a machine that extracts the stem cells and
returns other portions of the blood to the donor.
Stem cells can also be taken from umbilical cord blood just after birth. Of all stem cell types, autologous
harvesting involves the least risk. By definition, autologous cells are obtained from one's own body, just as
one may bank his or her own blood for elective surgical procedures.
Adult stem cells are frequently used in medical therapies, for example in bone marrow transplantation.
Stem cells can now be artificially grown and transformed (differentiated) into specialized cell types with
characteristics consistent with cells of various tissues such as muscles or nerves. Embryonic cell
lines and autologous embryonic stem cells generated through Somatic-cell nuclear
transfer or dedifferentiation have also been proposed as promising candidates for future therapies.
[1]

Research into stem cells grew out of findings by Ernest A. McCulloch and James E. Till at theUniversity

of Toronto in the 1960s

Properties
The classical definition of a stem cell requires that it possess two properties:

Self-renewal: the ability to go through numerous cycles of cell division while maintaining the
undifferentiated state.

Potency: the capacity to differentiate into specialized cell types. In the strictest sense, this
requires stem cells to be either totipotent or pluripotentto be able to give rise to any mature cell
type, although multipotent or unipotent progenitor cells are sometimes referred to as stem cells. Apart
from this it is said that stem cell function is regulated in a feed back mechanism.

Self-renewal
Two mechanisms exist to ensure that a stem cell population is maintained:
1. Obligatory asymmetric replication: a stem cell divides into one mother cell that is identical to the
original stem cell, and another daughter cell that is differentiated.
2. Stochastic differentiation: when one stem cell develops into two differentiated daughter cells,
another stem cell undergoes mitosis and produces two stem cells identical to the original.

Potency definition
Main article: Cell potency

Pluripotent, embryonic stem cells originate as inner cell mass (ICM) cells within a blastocyst. These stem cells
can become any tissue in the body, excluding a placenta. Only cells from an earlier stage of the embryo, known
as the morula, are totipotent, able to become all tissues in the body and the extra embryonic placenta.

Human embryonic stem cells

A: Stem cell colonies that are not yet differentiated.
B: Nerve cells, an example of a type after differentiation.

Potency specifies the differentiation potential (the potential to differentiate into different cell types) of the
stem cell.[4]

Totipotent (a.k.a. omnipotent) stem cells can differentiate into embryonic and extra embryonic cell
types. Such cells can construct a complete, viable organism. [4] These cells are produced from the
fusion of an egg and sperm cell. Cells produced by the first few divisions of the fertilized egg are also
totipotent.[5]

Pluripotent stem cells are the descendants of totipotent cells and can differentiate into nearly all
cells,[4] i.e. cells derived from any of the three germ layers.[6]

Multipotent stem cells can differentiate into a number of cell types, but only those of a closely
related family of cells.[4]

Oligopotent stem cells can differentiate into only a few cell types, such as lymphoid or myeloid
stem cells.[4]

Unipotent cells can produce only one cell type, their own, [4] but have the property of self-renewal,
which distinguishes them from non-stem cells (e.g. progenitor cells, muscle stem cells).

Identification
In practice, stem cells are identified by whether they can regenerate tissue. For example, the defining test
for bone marrow or hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) is the ability to transplant the cells and save an
individual without HSCs. This demonstrates that the cells can produce new blood cells over a long term. It
should also be possible to isolate stem cells from the transplanted individual, which can themselves be
transplanted into another individual without HSCs, demonstrating that the stem cell was able to selfrenew.
Properties of stem cells can be illustrated in vitro, using methods such as clonogenic assays, in which
single cells are assessed for their ability to differentiate and self-renew.[7][8] Stem cells can also be isolated
by their possession of a distinctive set of cell surface markers. However, in vitro culture conditions can
alter the behavior of cells, making it unclear whether the cells will behave in a similar manner in vivo.
There is considerable debate as to whether some proposed adult cell populations are truly stem cells.

Embryonic
Main article: Embryonic stem cell
Embryonic stem (ES) cells are stem cells derived from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst, an earlystage embryo.[9] Human embryos reach the blastocyst stage 45 days post fertilization, at which time they
consist of 50150 cells. ES cells are pluripotent and give rise during development to all derivatives of the
three primary germ layers: ectoderm, endoderm and mesoderm. In other words, they can develop into
each of the more than 200 cell types of the adult body when given sufficient and necessary stimulation for
a specific cell type. They do not contribute to the extra-embryonic membranes or the placenta.
Nearly all research to date has made use of mouse embryonic stem cells (mES) or human embryonic
stem cells (hES). Both have the essential stem cell characteristics, yet they require very different
environments in order to maintain an undifferentiated state. Mouse ES cells are grown on a layer
of gelatin as an extracellular matrix (for support) and require the presence of leukemia inhibitory
factor (LIF). Human ES cells are grown on a feeder layer of mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) and
require the presence of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF or FGF-2). [10] Without optimal culture
conditions or genetic manipulation,[11] embryonic stem cells will rapidly differentiate.
A human embryonic stem cell is also defined by the expression of several transcription factors and cell
surface proteins. The transcription factors Oct-4, Nanog, and Sox2 form the core regulatory network that
ensures the suppression of genes that lead to differentiation and the maintenance of Pluripotency.[12] The

cell surface antigens most commonly used to identify hES cells are the glycolipids stage specific
embryonic antigen 3 and 4 and the keratin sulfate antigens Tra-1-60 and Tra-1-81. The molecular
definition of a stem cell includes many more proteins and continues to be a topic of research. [13]
There are currently no approved treatments using embryonic stem cells. The first human trial was
approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in January 2009. [14] However, the human trial was not
initiated until October 13, 2010 in Atlanta for spinal injury victims. On November 14, 2011 the company
conducting the trial announced that it will discontinue further development of its stem cell programs. [15] ES
cells, being pluripotent cells, require specific signals for correct differentiationif injected directly into
another body, ES cells will differentiate into many different types of cells, causing a teratoma.
Differentiating ES cells into usable cells while avoiding transplant rejection are just a few of the hurdles
that embryonic stem cell researchers still face.[16] Many nations currently have moratoria on either ES cell
research or the production of new ES cell lines. Because of their combined abilities of unlimited
expansion and pluripotency, embryonic stem cells remain a theoretically potential source for regenerative
medicine and tissue replacement after injury or disease.

Mouse embryonic stem cells with fluorescent marker

Human embryonic stem cell colony on mouse embryonic fibroblast feeder layer

Fetal
The primitive stem cells located in the organs of fetuses are referred to as fetal stem cells. [17] There are
two types of fetal stem cells:
1. Fetal proper stem cells come from the tissue of the fetus proper, and are generally obtained after
an abortion. These stem cells are not immortal but have a high level of division and are
multipotent.

2. Extraembryonic fetal stem cells come from extraembryonic membranes, and are generally not
distinguished from adult stem cells. These stem cells are acquired after birth, they are not
immortal but have a high level of cell division, and are pluripotent. [18]

Adult
Main article: Adult stem cell

Stem cell division and differentiation. A: stem cell; B: progenitor cell; C: differentiated cell; 1: symmetric stem
cell division; 2: asymmetric stem cell division; 3: progenitor division; 4: terminal differentiation

Adult stem cells, also called somatic (from Greek , "of the body") stem cells, are stem cells
which maintain and repair the tissue in which they are found. [19] They can be found in children, as well as
adults.[20]
Pluripotent adult stem cells are rare and generally small in number, but they can be found in umbilical
cord blood and other tissues.[21] Bone marrow is a rich source of adult stem cells, [22] which have been used
in treating several conditions including spinal cord injury,[23] liver cirrhosis,[24] chronic limb ischemia [25] and
endstage heart failure.[26] The quantity of bone marrow stem cells declines with age and is greater in males
than females during reproductive years.[27] Much adult stem cell research to date has aimed to

characterize their potency and self-renewal capabilities.[28] In mice, pluripotent stem cells are directly
generated from adult fibroblast cultures. However, mice do not live long with stem cell organs. [29]
Most adult stem cells are lineage-restricted (multipotent) and are generally referred to by their tissue
origin (mesenchymal stem cell, adipose-derived stem cell, endothelial stem cell, dental pulp stem cell,
etc.).[30][31]
Adult stem cell treatments have been successfully used for many years to treat leukemia and related
bone/blood cancers through bone marrow transplants. [32] Adult stem cells are also used in veterinary
medicine to treat tendon and ligament injuries in horses. [33]
The use of adult stem cells in research and therapy is not as controversial as the use of embryonic stem
cells, because the production of adult stem cells does not require the destruction of an embryo.
Additionally, in instances where adult stem cells are obtained from the intended recipient (an autograft),
the risk of rejection is essentially non-existent. Consequently, more US government funding is being
provided for adult stem cell research.[34]

Amniotic
Multipotent stem cells are also found in amniotic fluid. These stem cells are very active, expand
extensively without feeders and are not tumorigenic. Amniotic stem cells are multipotent and can
differentiate in cells of adipogenic, osteogenic, myogenic, endothelial, hepatic and also neuronal lines.
[35]

Amniotic stem cells are a topic of active research.

Use of stem cells from amniotic fluid overcomes the ethical objections to using human embryos as a
source of cells. Roman Catholic teaching forbids the use of embryonic stem cells in experimentation;
accordingly, the Vatican newspaper "Osservatore Romano" called amniotic stem cells "the future of
medicine".[36]
It is possible to collect amniotic stem cells for donors or for autologuous use: the first US amniotic stem
cells bank [37][38] was opened in 2009 in Medford, MA, by Biocell Center Corporation[39][40][41] and collaborates
with various hospitals and universities all over the world. [42]

Cord blood
Main article: Cord blood-derived multipotent stem cell
A certain kind of cord blood stem cell (CB-SC) is multipotent and displays embryonic
and hematopoietic characteristics. Phenotypic characterization demonstrates that (CB-SCs) display
embryonic cell markers (e.g., transcription factors OCT-4 and Nanog, stage-specific
embryonic antigen (SSEA)-3, and SSEA-4) and leukocyte common antigen CD45, but that they are
negative for blood cell lineage markers

(e.g., CD1a, CD3, CD4, CD8,CD11b, CD11c, CD13, CD14, CD19, CD20, CD34, CD41a, CD41b, CD83,
CD90, CD105, and CD133).[43][44]
Additionally, CB-SCs display very low immunogenicity as indicated by expression of a very low level
of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) antigens and failure to stimulate the proliferation
of allogeneic lymphocytes.[43][45] They can give rise to three embryonic layer-derived cells in the presence of
different inducers.[43][46]
More specifically, CB-SCs tightly adhere to culture dishes with a large rounded morphology and are
resistant to common detaching methods (trypsin/EDTA).[43][45][46] CB-SCs are the active agent in stem cell
educator therapy, which has therapeutic potential against autoimmune diseases like type 1
diabetes according to studies by Yong Zhao et al.[44][47][48][49][unreliable medical source?]

Induced pluripotent
Main article: Induced pluripotent stem cell
These are not adult stem cells, but rather adult cells (e.g. epithelial cells) reprogrammed to give rise to
pluripotent capabilities. Using genetic reprogramming with protein transcription factors, pluripotent stem
cells equivalent to embryonic stem cells have been derived from human adult skin tissue. [50][51][52] Shinya
Yamanaka and his colleagues at Kyoto University used the transcription factors Oct3/4, Sox2, c-Myc, and
Klf4[50] in their experiments on cells from human faces. Junying Yu, James Thomson, and their colleagues
at the University of WisconsinMadison used a different set of factors, Oct4, Sox2, Nanog and Lin28,
[50]

and carried out their experiments using cells from human foreskin.

As a result of the success of these experiments, Ian Wilmut, who helped create the first cloned
animal Dolly the Sheep, has announced that he will abandon somatic cell nuclear transfer as an avenue
of research.[53]
Frozen blood samples can be used as a source of induced pluripotent stem cells, opening a new avenue
for obtaining the valued cells.[54]

Lineage
Main article: Stem cell line
To ensure self-renewal, stem cells undergo two types of cell division (see Stem cell division and
differentiation diagram). Symmetric division gives rise to two identical daughter cells both endowed with
stem cell properties. Asymmetric division, on the other hand, produces only one stem cell and
a progenitor cell with limited self-renewal potential. Progenitors can go through several rounds of cell
division before terminally differentiating into a mature cell. It is possible that the molecular distinction
between symmetric and asymmetric divisions lies in differential segregation of cell membrane proteins
(such as receptors) between the daughter cells.[55]

An alternative theory is that stem cells remain undifferentiated due to environmental cues in their
particular niche. Stem cells differentiate when they leave that niche or no longer receive those signals.
Studies in Drosophila germarium have identified the signals decapentaplegic and adherens junctions that
prevent germarium stem cells from differentiating.[56][57]

Treatments
Main article: Stem cell therapy

Diseases and conditions where stem cell treatment is being investigated.

Diseases and conditions where stem cell treatment is being investigated include:

Diabetes[58]

Rheumatoid arthritis[58]

Parkinson's disease[58]

Alzheimer's disease[58]

Osteoarthritis[58]

Stroke and traumatic brain injury repair[59]

Learning defects [60]

Spinal cord injury repair [61]

Heart infarction [62]

Anti-cancer [63]

Baldness [64]

Replace missing teeth [65]

Repair hearing [66]

Restore vision [67]

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis [68]

Crohn's disease [69]

Wound healing [70]

Stem cell therapy it is the use of stem cells to treat or prevent a disease or condition. Bone marrow
transplant is a crude form of stem cell therapy that has been used clinically for many years without
controversy. No stem cell therapies other than bone marrow transplant are widely used.
Research is underway to develop various sources for stem cells, and to apply stem cell treatments
for neurodegenerative diseases and conditions, diabetes, heart disease, and other conditions.
In more recent years, with the ability of scientists to isolate and culture embryonic stem cells, and with
scientists' growing ability to create stem cells using somatic cell nuclear transfer and techniques to
created induced pluripotent stem cells, controversy has crept in, both related to abortion politics and
to human cloning.

Disadvantages
Stem cell treatments may require immunosuppression because of a requirement for radiation before the
transplant to remove the patient's previous cells, or because the patient's immune system may target the
stem cells. One approach to avoid the second possibility is to use cells from the same patient that is being
treated.
Pluripotency in certain stem cells could also make it difficult to obtain a specific cell type. It is also difficult
to obtain the exact cell type needed, because not all cells in a population differentiate uniformly.
Undifferentiated cells can create tissues other than desired types.
Some stem cells form tumors after transplantation; Pluripotency is linked to tumor formation especially in
embryonic stem cells, fetal proper stem cells, and induced pluripotent stem cells. Fetal proper stem cells
form tumors despite multipotency.

Hepatotoxicity and drug-induced liver injury account for a substantial number of failures of new drugs in
development and market withdrawal, highlighting the need for screening assays such as stem cell-derived
hepatocyte-like cells that are capable of detecting toxicity early in the drug development process.

Research patents
Further information: Consumer Watchdog vs. Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation
Some of the fundamental patents covering human embryonic stem cells are owned by the Wisconsin
Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) - they are patents 5,843,780, 6,200,806, and 7,029,913 invented
by James A. Thomson. WARF does not enforce these patents against academic scientists, but does
enforce them against companies.[76]
In 2006, a request for the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to re-examine the three patents was
filed by the Public Patent Foundation on behalf of its client, the non-profit patent-watchdog
group Consumer Watchdog (formerly the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights). [76] In the reexamination process, which involves several rounds of discussion between the USTPO and the parties,
the USPTO initially agreed with Consumer Watchdog and rejected all the claims in all three patents,
[77]

however in response, WARF amended the claims of all three patents to make them more narrow, and

in 2008 the USPTO found the amended claims in all three patents to be patentable. The decision on one
of the patents (7,029,913) was appealable, while the decisions on the other two were not. [78][79] Consumer
Watchdog appealed the granting of the '913 patent to the USTPO's Board of Patent Appeals and
Interferences (BPAI) which granted the appeal, and in 2010 the BPAI decided that the amended claims of
the '913 patent were not patentable.[80] However, WARF was able to re-open prosecution of the case and
did so, amending the claims of the '913 patent again to make them more narrow, and in January 2013 the
amended claims were allowed.[81]
In July 2013, Consumer Watchdog announced that it would appeal the decision to allow the claims of the
'913 patent to the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC), the federal appeals court that
hears patent cases.[82] At a hearing in December 2013, the CAFC raised the question of whether
Consumer Watchdog had legal standing to appeal; the case could not proceed until that issue was
resolved.[83]

Key research events

This section may be too long to read and navigate comfortably. Please
consider splitting content into sub-articles or condensing it. (December 2013)

1908: The term "stem cell" was proposed for scientific use by the Russian histologist Alexander
Maksimov (18741928) at congress of hematologic society in Berlin. It postulated existence of
haematopoietic stem cells.

1960s: Joseph Altman and Gopal Das present scientific evidence of adult neurogenesis, ongoing
stem cell activity in the brain; their reports contradict Cajal's "no new neurons" dogma and are largely
ignored.

1963: Becker, McCulloch and Till illustrate the presence of self-renewing cells in mouse bone
marrow.

1968: Bone marrow transplant between two siblings successfully treats SCID.

1978: Haematopoietic stem cells are discovered in human cord blood.

1981: Mouse embryonic stem cells are derived from the inner cell mass by scientists Martin
Evans, Matthew Kaufman, and Gail R. Martin. Gail Martin is attributed for coining the term
"Embryonic Stem Cell".[84]

1992: Neural stem cells are cultured in vitro as neurospheres.

1995: Indian scientist Dr. B.G. Matapurkar pioneers in adult stem-cell research with clinical
utilization of research in the body and neo-regeneration of tissues and organs in the body. Received
International Patent from US Patent Office (USA) in 2001 (effective from 1995). Clinical utilization in
human body also demonstrated and patented in 60 patients (World Journal of Surgery-1999 [85] and
1991[86]).

1997: Dr. B.G. Matapurkar's surgical technique on regeneration of tissues and organs is
published.[87] Regeneration of fallopian tube and uterus is published. [88]

1997: Leukemia is shown to originate from a haematopoietic stem cell, the first direct evidence
for cancer stem cells.

1998: James Thomson and coworkers derive the first human embryonic stem cell line at
the University of WisconsinMadison.[89]

1998: John Gearhart (Johns Hopkins University) extracted germ cells from fetal gonadal tissue
(primordial germ cells) before developing pluripotent stem cell lines from the original extract.

2000s: Several reports of adult stem cell plasticity are published.

2001: Scientists at Advanced Cell Technology clone first early (four- to six-cell stage) human
embryos for the purpose of generating embryonic stem cells. [90]

2003: Dr. Song Tao Shi of NIH discovers new source of adult stem cells in children's primary
teeth.[91]

20042005: Korean researcher Hwang Woo-Suk claims to have created several

human embryonic stem cell lines from unfertilized human oocytes. The lines were later shown to be
fabricated.

2005: Researchers at Kingston University in England claim to have discovered a third category of
stem cell, dubbed cord-blood-derived embryonic-like stem cells (CBEs), derived from umbilical cord
blood. The group claims these cells are able to differentiate into more types of tissue than adult stem
cells.

2005: Researchers at UC Irvine's Reeve-Irvine Research Center are able to partially restore the
ability of rats with paralyzed spines to walk through the injection of human neural stem cells.[92]

Yong Zhao, University of Illinois at Chicago

April 2006 Scientists at the University of Illinois at Chicago identified novel stem cells from
the umbilical cord blood with embryonic and hematopoietic characteristics.[43]

August 2006: Mouse Induced pluripotent stem cells: the journal Cell publishes Kazutoshi
Takahashi and Shinya Yamanaka.[29]

November 2006: Yong Zhao et al. revealed the immune regulation of T lymphocytes by Cord
Blood-Derived Multipotent Stem Cells (CB-SCs).[45]

October 2006: Scientists at Newcastle University in England create the first ever artificial liver
cells using umbilical cord blood stem cells. [93][94]

January 2007: Scientists at Wake Forest University led by Dr. Anthony Atala and Harvard
University report discovery of a new type of stem cell in amniotic fluid.[95] This may potentially provide
an alternative to embryonic stem cells for use in research and therapy.[96]

June 2007: Research reported by three different groups shows that normal skin cells can be
reprogrammed to an embryonic state in mice.[97] In the same month, scientist Shoukhrat
Mitalipov reports the first successful creation of a primate stem cell line through somatic cell nuclear
transfer[98]

Martin Evans, a co-winner of the Nobel Prize in recognition of his gene targeting work.

October 2007: Mario Capecchi, Martin Evans, and Oliver Smithies win the 2007 Nobel Prize for
Physiology or Medicine for their work on embryonic stem cells from mice using gene targeting
strategies producing genetically engineered mice (known as knockout mice) for gene research.[99]

November 2007: Human induced pluripotent stem cells: Two similar papers released by their
respective journals prior to formal publication: in Cell by Kazutoshi Takahashi and Shinya Yamanaka,
"Induction of pluripotent stem cells from adult human fibroblasts by defined factors", [100] and
in Science by Junying Yu, et al., from the research group of James Thomson, "Induced pluripotent
stem cell lines derived from human somatic cells":[101] pluripotent stem cells generated from mature
human fibroblasts. It is possible now to produce a stem cell from almost any other human cell instead
of using embryos as needed previously, albeit the risk of tumorigenesis due to c-myc and retroviral
gene transfer remains to be determined.

January 2008: Robert Lanza and colleagues at Advanced Cell Technology and UCSF create the
first human embryonic stem cells without destruction of the embryo [102]

January 2008: Development of human cloned blastocysts following somatic cell nuclear
transfer with adult fibroblasts[103]

February 2008: Generation of pluripotent stem cells from adult mouse liver and stomach: these
iPS cells seem to be more similar to embryonic stem cells than the previously developed iPS cells
and not tumorigenic, moreover genes that are required for iPS cells do not need to be inserted into
specific sites, which encourages the development of non-viral reprogramming techniques. [104]

March 2008-The first published study of successful cartilage regeneration in the human knee
using autologous adult mesenchymal stem cells is published by clinicians from Regenerative
Sciences[105]

October 2008: Sabine Conrad and colleagues at Tbingen, Germany generate pluripotent stem
cells from spermatogonial cells of adult human testis by culturing the cells in vitro under leukemia
inhibitory factor (LIF) supplementation.[106]

30 October 2008: Embryonic-like stem cells from a single human hair.[107]

January 2009: Yong Zhao and colleagues confirmed the reversal of autoimmune-caused type 1
diabetes by Cord Blood-Derived Multipotent Stem Cells (CB-SCs) in an animal experiment.[44][47]

1 March 2009: Andras Nagy, Keisuke Kaji, et al. discover a way to produce embryonic-like stem
cells from normal adult cells by using a novel "wrapping" procedure to deliver specific genes to adult
cells to reprogram them into stem cells without the risks of using a virus to make the change. [108][109]
[110]

The use of electroporation is said to allow for the temporary insertion of genes into the cell. [111][111][112]

[113]

28 May 2009 Kim et al. announced that they had devised a way to manipulate skin cells to create
patient specific "induced pluripotent stem cells" (iPS), claiming it to be the 'ultimate stem cell solution'.
[114]

11 October 2010 First trial of embryonic stem cells in humans. [115]

25 October 2010: Ishikawa et al. write in the Journal of Experimental Medicine that research
shows that transplanted cells that contain their new host's nuclear DNA could still be rejected by the
invidual's immune system due to foreignmitochondrial DNA. Tissues made from a person's stem cells
could therefore be rejected, because mitochondrial genomes tend to accumulate mutations. [116]

2011: Israeli scientist Inbar Friedrich Ben-Nun led a team which produced the first stem cells from
endangered species, a breakthrough that could save animals in danger of extinction. [117]

January 2012: The human clinical trial of treating type 1 diabetes with lymphocyte
modification using Cord Blood-Derived Multipotent Stem Cells (CB-SCs) achieved an improvement of
C-peptide levels, reduced the median glycated hemoglobin A1C (HbA1c) values, and decreased the
median daily dose of insulin in both human patient groups with and without residual beta cell function.
[48][49]

Yong Zhao's Stem Cell Educator Therapy appears "so simple and so safe"[118]
October 2012: Positions of nucleosomes in mouse embryonic stem cells and the changes in their

positions during differentiation to neural progenitor cells and embryonic fibroblasts are determined
with single-nucleotide resolution.[119]

2012: Katsuhiko Hayashi used mouse skin cells to create stem cells and then used these stem
cells to create mouse eggs. These eggs were then fertilized and produced healthy baby offspring.
These latter mice were able to have their own babies. [120]

2013: First time lab grown meat made from muscle stem-cells has been cooked and tasted. [121]

2013: First time mice adult cells were reprogrammed into stem cells in vivo. [122]

2013: Scientists at Scotland's Heriot-Watt University developed a 3D printer that can produce
clusters of living human embryonic stem cells, potentially allowing complete organs to be printed on
demand in the future.[123]

2014: Adult mouse cells reprogrammed to pluripotent stem cells using stimulus-triggered
acquisition of pluripotency (STAP);[124] a process which involved bathing blood cells in an acid bath
(pH 5.7) for 30minutes at 37 C.[125] A little over a month after the publication of these findings, errors
were discovered and the quality of the research has been widely questioned. [126] Further irregularities
regarding the mice used have emerged as recently as June 2014

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