In the medieval ages, alchemists dedicated their lifetimes searching for the formula that would transform ordinary metals into gold. In our bodies, several cases of "cellular alchemy" have been reported. Known as transdifferentiation, this process consists of one specialized cell type transmuting into a different one.
Until now, this phenomenon had only been observed in the context of replenishing cells lost from pre-existing structures. Now, UCSF researchers, led by Holger Willenbring, MD,
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