Fat stem cells turn into muscle in experiment

now we're talking...

now if we could just get fat cells to turn into gasoline...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Stem cells taken from human fat can be transformed into smooth muscle cells, offering a way to treat many kinds of heart disease, gastrointestinal and bladder ills, U.S. researchers reported on Monday.

While the experiment does not quite offer a way to turn a pot belly into a flat stomach, the researchers said the transformed cells contracted and relaxed just like smooth muscle cells.

These cells help the heart beat and blood flow, push food through the digestive system and make bladders fill and empty, the researchers reported.


Their study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is the latest to show that fat can be a rich source of the body's master cells.

"Fat tissue may prove a reliable source of smooth muscle cells that we can use to regenerate and repair damaged organs," said Dr. Larissa Rodriguez, an assistant professor in the Department of Urology at the University of California Los Angeles medical school.

And almost any American has plenty of spare fat cells.

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