Like salamanders and other lower species, humans possess genes that direct the body to make new arms and legs after an injury. But in humans, the genes lie dormant, inactivated after evolution favored the swift patching of wounds through scarring over the slow regeneration of body parts.
Researchers at Northwestern University have discovered genetic switches, they think can lead to a way to turn on these dormant genes. The result? A person who lost a limb might be able to generate a new one.
"All of a sudden, this becomes not so much science fiction but really a challenging science problem," said Dr. Stephen Badylak of the University of Pittsburgh, who is coordinating one of the research teams. "This particular project to regrow digits and limbs on humans is kind of like saying we're going to go to the moon."
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