"Doctor's orders"

There have been some new, exciting discoveries about stem cells that might change our lives in coming years, but I am surprised to see that there is not much talk about this in the news media.
Embryonic stem cells are cells derived from embryos or fertilized eggs that can grow into any kind of cell. There is great potential for using such cells in curing all kinds of diseases, and lot of research is being done on them.
However, there has been much debate about the ethics of using embryonic cells for curing diseases.
The research of Dr. Yamanka, an orthopedic surgeon who joined the field  medical research, could change all that by making it possible for us to get stem cells without having to use embryos.
Yamanka found his motivation one day when he looked through a microscope. He was at a friend’s laboratory and was invited to look at some stem cells. As he looked, he realized that these cells were very much like those of his daughter, as they were derived from an embryo.
He decided that he was going to find a way to make stem cells without destroying embryos. He decided to experiment and see if removing some genes from a normal cell would make it like an embryonic cell.
He chose 24 genes that he figured were involved in making cells mature and so decided to see if modifying these genes would make the cell become like a stem cell.
Much like Thomas Edison, who had to do thousands of experiments to make a single discovery, Yamanka faced numerous obstacles. At times, the research seemed hopeless and the outcomes disappointing.
There must have been many voices at the back of his mind telling him that such ideas were too far-fetched and he should abandon this research for something more lucrative and fruitful. But the 1 percent inspiration that he got from looking at the stem cells under a microscope helped him with the 99 percent perspiration he endured.
Finally, he was surprised to find that altering only four genes was enough to make normal skin cells behave much like cells from embryos. But he knew that there would be a lot of skepticism about his discovery.
Only recently, there was a big scandal where a South Korean physician and scientist, Dr. Hwang Woo Suk, admitted that a lot of his research was actually fabricated and not true.
When Yamanka presented his discovery, there was a lot of excitement but also a lot of skepticism. However, two independent research groups have been able to duplicate his findings and have even improved upon them.
Yet, there is a lot of work to do. When altering the four genes, Yamanka used viruses that can cause their own problems in a patient. So, there is ongoing research trying to find ways to modify the cells without having to use these viruses, called retroviruses. Also, these cells often turned cancerous which would not be a good outcome for a patient as one disease would be replaced with another. Some recent research has even overcome this problem.
Surely Dr. Yamanka will be a strong candidate for a Nobel prize for his work in medicine. We can all be proud that he has agreed to come to University of California at San Francisco for some additional research.
We should all try to read and learn about this research as it is likely to change our lives in years to come.
Dr. Nitin Bawa is a board certified internal medicine physician. He can be reached at (850) 534-4170.