摘要
At the core of regenerative medicine lies the expectation of repair or replacementof damaged tissues or whole organs. Donor scarcity and transplant rejection aremajor obstacles, and exactly the obstacles that stem cellbased therapy promisesto overcome. These therapies demand a comprehensive understanding of theasymmetric division of stem cells, i.e. their ability to produce cells with identicalpotency or differentiated cells. It is believed that with better understanding,researchers will be able to direct stem cell differentiation. Here, we describeextraordinary advances in manipulating stem cell fate that show that we need tofocus on the centrosome and the centrosome-derived primary cilium. This beliefcomes from the fact that this organelle is the vehicle that coordinates theasymmetric division of stem cells. This is supported by studies that report thesignificant role of the centrosome/cilium in orchestrating signaling pathways thatdictate stem cell fate. We anticipate that there is sufficient evidence to place thisorganelle at the center of efforts that will shape the future of regenerativemedicine.
