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Science

Rat Pups Born From Sperm Artificially Produced From Stem Cells (newscientist.com) 46

Posted by msmash from the moving-forward dept.
Rat sperm cells generated from stem cells in the lab have been used to produce fertile offspring for the first time. The approach could be adapted to rescue endangered rodents and may help to inform the artificial production of human sperm to treat infertility. From a report: Until now, cells that give rise to sperm and egg cells, called germ cells, have only been produced in the lab in mice. Toshihiro Kobayashi at the University of Tokyo and his colleagues have now shown that stem cells extracted from rat embryos can be grown in the lab to produce germ cells that form sperm when implanted into rat testes. The researchers then collected the sperm cells and injected them into egg cells, before implanting the fertilised embryos into female rats. These grew into healthy adult rats that were able to have offspring of their own. "Until recently, we didn't know enough about how rat germ cells develop in order to adapt the mouse procedure for rats. Now, we understand more about what proteins and growth factors are needed to generate the rat germ cells, so we could do this work," says Kobayashi. Journal reference: Science, DOI: 10.1126/science.abl4412.
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Rat Pups Born From Sperm Artificially Produced From Stem Cells More

Rat Pups Born From Sperm Artificially Produced From Stem Cells

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  • One less thing we are useful for. (Score:3)

    by SciCom Luke ( 2739317 ) on Monday April 11, 2022 @04:25PM (#62437638)
    At least we can still carry heavy things, open jars, and carefully put spiders outside.

    • And who will watch all these superhero movies that Hollywood keeps making?

    • Don't forget shoveling the driveway, mowing the lawn and taking out the trash! Not to mention reaching things on high shelves!

  • I wonder ifâ" could a female stem cell be coaxed into becoming a sperm cell? If so, then Lesbian couples could have children.

    • They can have children by adopting children without parents, rather than making even more humans.

      • I spent a portion of my life growing up in a home without a father, and I don't wish that on anyone.

        If lesbians truly understood what it feels like to grow up wanting, but not having, a father, only the cruelest among them would consider adoption.

        Society has always had those who don't feel themselves called to marriage, but it was only in the past few decades that society has tried to force them into the nuclear family model as if they were no different from anyone else. Instead of insisting "they're

        • It's cruel to give a kid with parents two who will love them?

          That is some messed up logic.

          Yes, ideally it's best the biological parents raise the kid but that doesn't always happen.

          • It's not that your reason is faulty, but that you don't know how it feels. No one would doubt my mother's love for me, but I needed my father. Not a woman pretending to be my father, or even another man pretending to be my father, but my actual father.

            It's understandable; after all, if you can only imagine how it must feel, then the conclusions you draw from your imagined feelings have as much relevance to the real world as a daydream.

            The real problem is when people with no actual experience, or accou

            • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

              by newcastlejon ( 1483695 )

              The real problem is when people with no actual experience, or accountability for their actions, enact public policy based on their feelings, rather than reality.

              You mean like all those old white men legislating on what women can or can't do vis a vis reproductive health?

            • OK, but by the same turn, you can only *imagine* how it would feel to be raised by two mothers. You don't really *know*; You're only imagining.

        • First - this might come as a surprise to you, but members of the homo sapient species aren't all exactly like. One size does not fit all. Just because you were traumatized by the lack of a father doesn't mean that every kid would be. There are certainly plenty of kids who would do way better with two loving, highly-motivated same-sex parents, compared to bouncing randomly through the foster care system

          Second, nobody is "forcing" gay couples into the nuclear family mold. You're listening to way too muc

          • What about the child determining his/her own destiny? Can a child even know what is best for him/her?

            When it comes to the cases of someone who cannot make an informed decision, society falls back to what we know is true about human beings. Sadly, thanks to the University system, much of this knowledge has been lost. If we know what is good for children, we can make choices accordingly.

            And here's the thing: I have the benefit of actual experience in this area. I know what it's like to be raised with

            • Let's see. How to say this. You've obviously reached the point where you've accumulated a bit of life experience and wisdom. It sounds like you had a tumultuous childhood. And you're thoughtful enough apply your experience to the world around you in the hopes of making it a better place. Good for you. Now, if you'd like to progress to a somewhat higher level of thinking, here's the next realization to internalize:

              Your life experiences might allow you to judge what is good for MANY, but your life experie

              • Actually, I read the Guardian most frequently. Perhaps you should tell them they're too right wing.

                I would like you to stop assuming that people who come to the same conclusion as right-wing pundits do so because they are informed by right-wing echo chambers. It is a bit insulting to imply the only reason why I might (coincidentally, I might add) agree with points made by right wing pundits is because I lack the ability to think for myself. But for independent thought and personal experience, I'd still

        • I spent a portion of my life growing up in a home without a father, and I don't wish that on anyone.

          I spent a portion of my life growing up with only my father, and I wouldn't wish that on anyone. As the saying goes, a child growing up with parents who love each other will want for nothing; I don't see why it should matter what sex they are.

          With that said, I'm sometimes a little disappointed when I read stories about couples of any gender mix choosing to jump through hoops to conceive a child that's genetically theirs (even sometimes needing a surrogate) when there are so many children without parents who

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by MrKaos ( 858439 )

            As the saying goes, a child growing up with parents who love each other will want for nothing; I don't see why it should matter what sex they are.

            When the saying was created a male father and a female mother was the norm, so perhaps you don't understand why it matters what sex the parents are.

  • What if we took stem cells from a 2 month old and produced sperm, then IVF a lady and she has a child. Does the 2 month old have to pay child support?

    • Does the 2 month old have to pay child support?

      By the time of the birth, the 2 month old would be 11 months old. This is just one month shy of the working age in an iPhone factory. After one month on food stamps it's off to work.

      So the answer to your question is: eventually.

    • What if we took stem cells from a 2 month old and produced sperm, then IVF a lady and she has a child. Does the 2 month old have to pay child support?

      Only if the child is male.

  • Comment removed based on user account deletion

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by tlhIngan ( 30335 )

      There are plenty of species of rats.

      The rats you commonly see on the street are far different from pet rats, for example. Pet rates are often called "fancy rats" and are highly trainable pets that are great with children.

      Just because you only know street rats doesn't mean the only rats around are street rats.

  • We should be making rats sterile, not the other way around.

  • Sorry but it has finally happened... (Score:3)

    by the_other_one ( 178565 ) on Monday April 11, 2022 @04:42PM (#62437714) Homepage

    The women no longer need us.

    • Re:Sorry but it has finally happened... (Score:4, Informative)

      by tsqr ( 808554 ) on Monday April 11, 2022 @05:02PM (#62437766)

      The women no longer need us.

      Well, not quite, but they're getting closer. For now, you see.m to have overlooked an important step in the process, highlighted in the quote below:

      stem cells extracted from rat embryos can be grown in the lab to produce germ cells that form sperm when implanted into rat testes.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

        If this could be done in humans it would present interesting moral and legal issues. Say a man volunteers to use their balls as an incubator for sperm with DNA from a woman, so that she and her partner could have a child that is genetically their own. Who goes down as the father on the birth certificate, and does the man have any legal right to access the child?

        It could depend on how the law it written. Often laws are behind science in these areas.

    • As long as there are house spiders, women will need us.

  • ...Maru! useless. i know.

  • Alpha children wear grey. Huxley would be proud.

  • New York was beginning to worry.

  • Do they, or do they not, have to take the bar exam before they can practice law?

    hawk, esq

  • I love SFTSOS.

    That being said, this "breakthrough" is still a very rudimentary process with a lot of prereqs and intermediate dependencies.

    1) Obtain a living (or recently killed) embryo.
    2) Locate and extract specific cells from that embryo.
    3) Obtain an adult creature of the same species with at least one functional testis.
    4) Implant cells from Step 2 into the organ from Step 3.
    5) Wait.
    6) Harvest matured male gametes from Step 4.
    7) Obtain matured ova of the same species.
    8) Implant gametes from Step 6 into ga

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