Molecular Medicine Select

The recent generation of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells from adult human somatic cells has intensified interest in cellular therapies for treating human disease. This issue’s Molecular Medicine Select highlights progress in overcoming barriers to the use of transplanted cells. These achievements include the treatment of sickle cell anemia in mice using genetically repaired iPS cells, the creation of iPS cells that are less prone to cause cancer, and the transplantation of genetically modified skeletal muscle cells to prevent arrhythmia following heart attack in mice. Other recent reports describe a new method to foster the engraftment of transplanted cells and a new means to genetically alter human embryonic stem cells.