Researchers at the University of Minnesota have identified for the first time a group of genes that impact the development and function of blood stem cells, a discovery that brings researchers a step closer to harnessing the power of stem cells for disease treatments. Every day, blood stem cells divide and differentiate to generate approximately 200 billion new blood cells in the bone marrow of adults. To maintain their numbers over time, blood stem cells also can divide and give rise to new blood stem cells through a process called self-renewal. What was not fully understood is which genes control the self-renewal and differentiation processes, and how these genes could be used to influence, or regulate, these processes.The research will be published in the July issue of the journal of Public Library of Science Biology.
