Embryonic stem cells created without eggs

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., June 11 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists reportedly have created embryonic stem cells without eggs by genetically manipulating mature skin cells taken from mice.

Embryonic stem cells are unique because they can develop into virtually any kind of tissue type -- an attribute called pluripotency.

Scientists at the Whitehead Institute have transformed skin cells back into a pluripotent state -- one they say appears identical to an embryonic stem cell in every way.

"These reprogrammed cells ... are indistinguishable from embryonic stem cells," said Massachusetts Institute of Technology Professor Rudolf Jaenisch, senior author of the research.

The scientists found the reprogrammed skin cells can even give rise to live mice, contributing to every kind of tissue type, and can even be transmitted via germ cells to succeeding generations.

The study appears in the online issue of the journal Nature.