On one particular occasion when Albert Einstein was presiding over a physics final exam, a puzzled student asked him, “Dr. Einstein, “Aren’t these the same questions as last year’s exam?” Einstein replied, “Yes, but this year the answers are different.”
In every branch of science, the “answers” change from year to year, decade to decade. To illustrate the point, let’s consider the up-and-down…and up again story of the humble coconut.
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RNA Interference’s Hot Partnership With Stem Cells
Stem cell therapy and RNA interference (RNAi) may be the sexiest hook-up since peanut butter and chocolate. And scientists are just beginning to explore the potential of combining these medical therapies.
Until very recently, the application of each therapy seemed very specific and limited: stem cells for regenerative medicine; RNAi for genetic correction. Furthermore, the repairing abilities of stem cells seemed more limited than first expected, and RNAi proved very difficult to be delivered to its intended targets.
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