1. Background
We have turn engineering a gene into engineering a pathway, and we have lots of approaches to maintain the stability of the whole system. In terms of cells, it is difficult to satisfy what we need only by engineering a cell, because we require a mixture of different kind of cells to do more complex things. However, it is still very difficult for us to build such a mixed system, and the priority is how to balance suitable rate of different cell quorum. A suitable proportion is about correct result and max efficiency.
2. Theoretical significance
The STEM switch
The stem cells have a capacity of multidirectional differentiation. They can differentiate into different cells which own special functions. That's why we call them "omnipotent". How to achieve this shift? Is there a switch which can adjust this mechanism?
Then we can come up with a hypothesis: there should exist a kind of "stem switch" during the differentiation, which can be affected by the cell themsleves and the surroundings. This magic switch can change the multidirectional cells into the particular function cells. Most of the processes are irreversible, but in some extreme situations or some special cells, a few of them can change back again—having the multipotetional like stem cells.
We are happy to know that this hypothesis is proved to be true recently—there really has a special switch to regulate differentiation. |
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