Cellular Differentiation, Stem Cells, and Modern Medicine

Question 1

What is the cell formed at the end of fertilisation?

Answer 1

Trophectoderm

Question 2

An embryo begins as what type of cell?

Answer 2

Totipotent cells

Question 3

These cells can give rise to all cell types. But cannot be differentiated themselves

Answer 3

Embryonic stem cells.

Question 4

This refers to when differentiated cells contain all the DNA required to build an entire new organism.

Answer 4

Genomic Equivalence

Question 5

What kind of cells are embryonic stem cells?

Answer 5

Pluripotent

Question 6

These are stem cells made by reprogamming adult skin cells. These cells can be made from anyone and can generate any cell type

Answer 6

Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (IPS)

Question 7

These are undifferentiated, multipotent cells that divide to give rise to both stem cells and cells which could go on to differentiate into one or more types of functional tissue cells

Answer 7

Adult stem cells.

Question 8

What are the 2 types of cells that are not terminally differentiated? Or specialised?

Answer 8

Stem cells
Germ cells (egg & sperm)

Question 9

These are stem cells isolated from blood from umbilical cord of newborn babies that are kept frozen. They are immature blood stem cells.

Answer 9

Umbilical Cord Stem Cells

Question 10

Umbilical Cord Stem Cells can be used to treat what diseases?

Answer 10

Leukemia and other blood diseases

Question 11

These stem cells are found in the bone marrow and can be used for transplants.

Answer 11

Haematopoietic stem cells or blood stem cells

Question 12

What is the difference between an adult and embryonic stem cell?

Answer 12

• adult stem cells are multipotent (example blood stem cells) can only give rise to one or two cell types
• embryonic stem cells are pluripotent and can become any cell of the body

Question 13

How do cells differentiate?

Answer 13

Embryonic stem cells do NOT differentiate.

• so their function is first determined, in order for them to be differentiated (aka given a special role)
• once they’re differentiated, they will become multipotent and produce more copies of themselves

Question 14

This is based on the idea that it may be possible to alter the genetic code of an individual’s cells.

Answer 14

Integrative gene therapy (like CRISPR Cas 9)

Question 15

This is based on the idea that pluripotent stem cells can be used to repair or replace damaged organs or tissues.

Answer 15

Regenerative medicine

Question 16

Once a cell has differentiated…

Answer 16

it cannot give rise to any other cell types.

Question 17

These are proteins that can activate certain genes and shut down others by interacting with non-coding DNA

Answer 17

Regulatory proteins