GoKawiilBonn scientists convert old blood cells into rejuvenated neural stem cells
Researchers at University Hospital Bonn and the University of Bonn used a virus to deliver two transcription factors, directly converting red blood cell precursors into neural stem cells without passing through a pluripotent stage. Using DNA methylation and RNA sequencing to track changes, they found the converted cells' epigenetic age fell dramatically over 50 to 100 days, reaching roughly 5 percent of the donor's original age. The team published the findings in the journal Aging Cell.
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The approach suggests direct cell conversion could both change cell identity and reverse biological age markers simultaneously, which researchers say may offer a faster, more efficient route to aging research than pluripotent reprogramming. If replicated, this could inform future regenerative medicine strategies for producing youthful neural cells from a patient's own blood, though the work so far is limited to lab experiments and has not been tested for therapeutic use or safety in humans.
- Scientists directly converted red blood cell precursors into neural stem cells using viral delivery of two transcription factors.
- The converted cells' epigenetic age dropped to about 5 percent of the donor's chronological age within 50 to 100 days.
- The findings, published in Aging Cell, point to direct conversion as a method that can simultaneously change cell type and reduce epigenetic age.
Source: science.slashdot.org — Posted, 2026-10-25
Published there as: “Old Blood Cells Have Been Transformed Into Brain Stem Cells That Get Younger”
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