They said tests on mice suggested that stem cells from bone marrow, which are a kind of master cell with the ability to develop into various cell types, can become brain cells.
Stem cells offer the potential to mend and even regenerate tissues and organs.
But they are hard to find and scientists still do not fully understand what causes one stem cell to become a neuron, for example, and another to become a liver cell. The only convenient source of stem cells so far is the bone marrow, which generates both red blood cells and the white blood cells of the immune system. Mezey wondered if bone marrow might be a source of new cells for the central nervous system. To test her hypothesis, she used mice that have been genetically engineered to lack immune system cells, meaning they needed a bone marrow transplant. Her team deliberately chose female mice and gave them transplants from male mice.