Humans may one day be able to regrow missing limbs, and even brain tissue.
At least that’s the claim of scientists who have mapped the genome of a salamander, the Iberian ribbed newt.
Many amphibians have regenerative abilities, but salamanders have the special ability to regrow whole organs, including parts of the brain.
Among the early findings in the salamander’s genome is a family of genes that can provide clues to this unique ability.
Scientists say this will one day allow humans to regrow limbs and could also be the breakthrough needed to cure Parkinson’s and other degenerative brain conditions.
Spanish ribbed newt’s can grow up to 12 inches long (30 cm) and have an enormous genome. The specialist stem cells and the mechanism to produce them could cure Parkinson’s disease (stock image)
The huge salamander genome was sequenced by researchers from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden.
‘It’s only now that the technology is available to handle such a large genome,’ says Professor Andras Simon at Karolinska Institutet’s Department of Cell and Molecular Biology.
‘The sequencing per se doesn’t take that long – it’s recreating the genome from the sequences that’s so time consuming,’ he continued.
The Iberian ribbed newt is only found on the south coast of Spain and Portugal as well as in parts of Morocco.
Among the first findings are a multitude of copies of a certain microRNA group, which in mammals is mainly found in embryonic stem cells, but also in tumour cells.
Embryonic stem cells can morph into any cell in the human body.
In theory, that includes damaged cells in the brain from degenerative conditions, such as Parkinson’s disease.
15,000 genes in the DNA genome of the Iberian salamander are responsible for protein development. These genes could be applied to human DNA to potentially allow amputees to regrow missing limbs (stock image)
‘We showed ten years ago that salamanders can recreate all the cells that die in Parkinson’s disease in the space of four weeks,’ says Professor Simon.
‘We can now delve deeply into the molecular processes underlying this ability. Although we’re doing basic research, our findings can hopefully lead to the development of new regenerative strategies for humans.’
Professor Simon continued: ‘By looking at the salamander’s regenerative capacity, we can also understand how similar mechanisms could be activated in mammals and also in humans.
‘However, I’m careful to say that our research is directly aimed at curing people. It is still a long-term goal.’
The paper was published in Nature Communications.
Newts have the incredible ability to regrow entire limbs