Hundreds of different cell types in the human body are formed during embryonic development. These fully formed cells are derived from just a few identical stem cells. Researchers from the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Freiburg have now deciphered a control mechanism in these stem cells that decide what kind of cells they turn into. They found that there are different genes for each cell type and the amount of gene expression for those genes in stem cells determine what kind of cells they will turn into. The results of the study are a crucial step in understanding the mechanisms of how stem cells develop into different types of cells during embryonic development.
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