The study of human developmental biology is particularly constrained by practical and ethical limitations. Human ES cells may allow scientists to investigate how early human cells become committed to the major lineages of the body; how these lineages lay down the rudiments of the body’s tissues and organs; and how cells within these rudiments differentiate to form the myriad functional cell types which underlie normal function in the adult. The knowledge gained will impact many fields. For example, cancer biology will reap an especially large reward because it is now understood that many cancers arise by perturbations of normal developmental processes. The availability of human ES cells will also greatly accelerate the understanding of the causes of birth defects and thus lead directly to their possible prevention.
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More: Models of Human Disease that are Constrained by Current Animal and Cell Culture Models |
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