Scientists Create Human Sperm from Stem Cells

From Article:

Although the development once again raises the specter of creating humans in a petri dish or custom-designing egg and sperm cells for reproduction, lead author Karim Nayernia says that was not his team's intention. Rather, the experiment was a proof of concept that stem cells can generate any cell in the body - not only the dozens of tissues that make up the human body but also those egg and sperm cells that may give rise to altogether new bodies. "Other cell types don't generate the next generation," says Nayernia, a professor of stem-cell biology at Newcastle University. "This makes a very big difference between our study and the study of other cell types from embryonic stem cells."

It is worth noting that researchers could generate IVD sperm only from male embryos; when they tried using stem cells from a female embryo, they were unable to get sperm to mature past the spermatogonial stage. That suggests that genes located on the Y chromosome, which female cells do not contain, may be essential for triggering the maturation of the primitive sperm cell.

Article:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20090708/hl_time/08599190916400;_ylt=AkFnpk...

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From Article:
Researchers at Newcastle University in England report they have coaxed the first human sperm cells from embryonic stem cells, in a remarkable demonstration of how quickly the field of stem-cell science is moving.

Nayernia's in vitro–derived sperm, or IVD sperm, are not exactly like naturally occurring sperm, though they do bear four important similarities to the cells created in the testes. They contain half the number of chromosomes of other human cells (somatic cells contain 46 chromosomes, but egg and sperm cells have only 23, since they combine their genetic payloads during fertilization); they possess a head and a tail; they contain proteins essential for activating the egg during fertilization; and they swim, or move as sperm do in seeking out eggs to fertilize.

Article:
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1909164,00.html

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From Article:

Ethical storm flares as British scientists create artificial sperm from human stem cells

Using IVF techniques, the artificial sperm could be injected into eggs, allowing men who do not produce sperm to father children of their own.
However, British law forbids the use of lab-grown sperm or eggs in fertility treatment - a situation the researchers believe needs to change.
Lab-grown sperm could also shed light on the causes of infertility, leading to new treatments for the heartbreaking but little-understood condition that affects one in six couples.

Identification of a flaw in the sperm-making process could lead to the creation of a 'miracle pill' to boost fertility.

Professor Nayernia said: 'This is an important development as it will allow researchers to study in detail how sperm forms and lead to a better understanding of infertility in men - why it happens and what is causing it.

Article:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1198132/Ethical-storm-flares-B...