IIT Guwahati and CMC Vellore Create Method for Transforming Skin Cells into Pluripotent Stem Cells

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The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati researchers in collaboration with the scientists from Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore have developed a method to convert ordinary human skin cells into pluripotent stem cells.

IIT Guwahati, CMC Vellore Develop Method for Transforming Skin Cells into Pluripotent Stem Cells

New Delhi: Researchers from the Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati have collaborated with Christian Medical College (CMC) Vellore to develop a method for transforming ordinary human skin cells into pluripotent stem cells.

The research team was headed by Rajkumar Thummer, Assistant Professor in the Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering at IIT Guwahati. This research will help harness the potential of stem cells for medical applications.

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According to the institute, Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), possessing the ability to transform into diverse adult cell types, hold the potential to address an array of medical challenges, encompassing conditions such as diabetes, cancer, paralysis, and neurodegenerative ailments like Alzheimer's disease.

The research paper can be found in the Stem Cell Research journal and credits Khyati Raina, Gaurav Joshi, Kirti Modak, Chitra Premkumar, Sweety Priyanka, Praveena Rajesh, Shaji Velayudhan, and Rajkumar P Thummer as its authors.

According to Rajkumar P Thummer, IIT Guwahati, said, “The human body is made of many kinds of cells – nerve cells, heart cells, liver cells, pancreatic cells, and so on, with unique structures and functions”.

“All these distinctive cells originate from stem cells to perform a specific function. Lack of any of these cell types in the human body will result in a disease or disorder. Thus, stem cells can be programmed to develop into mature functional cells, which can be used to replace damaged cells”, he added.

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The institute's research was conducted by conventional methods for extracting stem cells from embryos or specific adult tissues. The team has used a similar method to the 2012 Nobel-winning research by Shinya Yamanaka.

The team has inserted targeted genes into skin cells, to reprogram them into iPSCs. As per the team, it uses a safe integration-free approach that safeguards the cells' genetic integrity and mitigates the possibility of immune rejection.

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