Scientists make stem cell breakthrough

An Australian research team together with international scientists has discovered a new stem cell that can be programmed to become any part of the body.

The ramifications of the find mean that a transplant can be conducted by using the patient's own cells, which can be made into organs and tissue.

The discovery, published in the journal Nature Thursday, is a breakthrough in stem cell research.

"These are remarkably useful cells, because you can apply them to several different areas of medicine," Xinhua quoted molecular biologist Thomas Preiss, from the Australian National University, as telling Fairfax Media.

More than 50 researchers from Australia, Canada, the Netherlands and South Korea worked in the study, known as Project Grandiose, which identified the pluripotent stem cell.

The new cell is considered a potential prototype for the mass production of therapeutic stem cells to treat a huge range of illnesses and injuries.

Medical conditions such as blindness, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, stroke and spinal cord injury will be major beneficiaries of the new find.