Engineering New Mammary Tissue
A nice piece of work is reported by the Times: as a part of demonstrating their ability to isolate mammary stem cells, scientists have "transplanted one of these cells into the mammary fat pad of a living female mouse from which all breast tissue had been removed. The cell divided and eventually gave rise to all the normal types of cell found in the mouse breast, and the gland worked normally to produce milk. ... If the findings prove applicable to people, scientists hope to develop drugs that target abnormal breast stem cells to eliminate not only tumours but also the source tissue from which they arise. In the longer term, it may also be possible to use mammary stem cells to grow breast tissue for reconstructive surgery after a mastectomy." Researchers are clearly making progress in capabilities when it comes to stem cell science.
Link: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1970399,00.html