Embryonic Stem Cells

Embryonic stem, or ES, cells are undifferentiated cells that come from the inner cell mast of a blastocyst, a three to five day old embryo.

They are pluripotent meaning they can produce all the different cell types in the body, from blood to brain cells, giving them a wide variety of potential uses in science and medicine. They are removed and grown in culture, where they can divide indefinitely, producing new stem cells. By manipulating the culture conditions, for instance by adding certain growth factors, the cells can be coaxed into differentiating into specific cell types.

These new cells could potentially be used to replace cells in the body lost due to damage or disease, such as the insulin producing cells of the pancreas that are destroyed in Type One diabetes.