Regenerating body parts is never easy, for example some lizards can regrow their tails, but this new appendage is not perfect as it is pale in color. Now, genetically modified stem cells help the gecko grow back a better tail.
Tweaking and implanting embryonic stem cells in the tail stump of the gecko (Lepidodactylus lugubris) has allowed the reptile to grow a tail that is more lifelike than ever before, researchers report Oct. 14 in Nature Communications.
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This finding is a stepping stone to develop regenerative therapy in humans that may one day be able to treat wounds that are difficult to heal for diabetics.
A gecko’s tail is an extension of its spine. “It’s just a concentric collection of tubes of fat, muscle, and skin,” said Thomas Lozito, a biologist at the University of Southern California at Los Angeles. Science News, Wednesday (11/3/2021).
That’s because stem cells in adult geckos produce molecular signals that promote cartilage formation in the new tail, but not bone or neural tissue.
Lozito and his colleagues used embryonic stem cells, which can develop into a wider tissue than adult stem cells. Modify it to then embed it on the stump gecko tail whose tail has been surgically lifted.
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