Mark Mercola Talks About Differentiating Cells into Adult Tissues

Blue H2O Productions

A major challenge in developing stem cell-based cures for disease is maturing those cells into adult cell types that can be used for transplantation or to study human disease. Dr. Mark Mercola has a CIRM grant to derive heart muscle cells from embryonic stem cells. These cells could one day be used for transplantation, for testing new drugs for side effects on heart muscle cells, and to learn about how the heart cells mature and develop. That knowledge could lead to new drugs to help the heart repair itself after a heart attack. Mercola is Professor and Associate Director, Del E. Webb Neuroscience, Aging and Stem Cell Research Center at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research.