If I could develop anything through an iPS cell experiment, what would it be? Why?
If I could develop anything through in iPS cell experiment, I would love to find a way to generate egg cells for females. Specifically, infertile females or those with low fertility. Personally, having problems with fertility and being able to have a child of my own has always been one of my greatest fears. Being able to have a child who shares much of my genetics would be incredible. In addition, one of my best friends is unable to produce fertile eggs because of the treatment she received for cancer when she was 11, and she has experienced a lot of hardship in accepting the idea that she will never be able to carry a baby and have a child who shares her own genetics. These are a couple of reasons I, and I think many people would be supportive of the generation of egg cells from a woman iPS cells. Right now, one of the common options for women who cannot produce viable eggs is to purchase eggs that have been donated by another woman. In this case, the egg can be fertilized by your partner’s sperm in vitro (in a laboratory), and then later implanted into your own, or a carrier’s uterus. Although this method works, it still does not solve the problem of women who cannot produce viable eggs being able to share their genetic material with their child. For their case, only the DNA of their partner can be transferred to the child, but DNA in the egg cell will come from the donor female. I brought this idea up in class when Dr. Kalas asked students what we would do if we could conduct any experiment with iPS cells. One of the problems with my idea that was mentioned was that it is very difficult to generate reproductive cells or gametes from iPS cells. Hopefully one day this technique can be possible so that women can always have the opportunity to have children that share their DNA.
PS: This was achieved successfully in mice for the first time this year. Study published just over a month ago, check it out!:
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016/10/mouse-egg-cells-made-entirely-lab-give-rise-healthy-offspring
Egg cells derived in the lab from embryonic stem cells.
O. Hikabe et. al., Nature 538, 7625 (20 October 2016) © MacMillian Publisher Ltd.