Genomic stability of pluripotent stem cells

Focus: Genomic stability and metabolism of human pluripotent stem cells; Heart failure modeling using pluripotent stem cells

What are the stem cells?

Stem cells are the body’s natural reservoir – replenishing stocks of specialized cells that have been used up or damaged. We all have stem cells at work inside us. Right now, inside your bone marrow, stem cells are busy making the 100,000 million new blood cells you need every single day!

We need to make new cells all the time, just to keep our body functioning. Some specialized cells, such as blood and muscle cells, are unable to make copies of themselves through cell division. Instead they are replenished from populations of stem cells.

Stem cells have the unique ability to produce both copies of themselves (self-renewal) and other more specialized cell types (differentiation) every time they divide. Stem cells, therefore, are essential to the maintenance of tissues such as blood, skin, and gut that undergo continuous turnover (cell replacement), and muscle, which can be built up according to the body's needs and is often damaged during physical exertion.

All relevant information about stem cells: http://www.eurostemcell.org/resource-type/factsheet