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Bridget M. Kuehn

JAMA. 2005;293:1047.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Timing is everything in the development of human stem cells, researchers from the University of Wisconsin in Madison have discovered. By exposing human embryonic stem cells to various biologic factors in a precisely timed manner, they succeeded in coaxing the stem cells to develop into motor neurons, which transmit messages from the central nervous system to the muscles. The research provides valuable insights into the unique challenges of working with human stem cells, and it may speed the development of treatments for such motor neuron disorders as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

"The main point is that human stem cells can be directed to become any cell you would like, but you have to tell them what to do and when," said Su-Chun Zhang, MD, PhD, an assistant professor and stem cell researcher at the Waisman Center at the University of Wisconsin. The research was published online in the . . . [Full Text of this Article]