SKIN cells have been turned [.

(From Newcastle Evening Chronicle)

SKIN cells have been turned directly into nerve cells in research described as a "huge leap forward" for regenerative medicine. Scientists in the US used just three genes to make the identity switch, which was achieved without using stem cells.

The breakthrough could "revolutionise the future of human stem cell therapy", said the researchers. In the past, normal cells have been coaxed into changing function by first turning the clock back on their development so they become "induced pluripotent stem cells". These have similar properties to stem cells taken from embryos, giving them the potential …