Investing in stem cells, the building blocks of the body

Stem cells have always been tomorrow’s technology. But it looks as though their time has finally come – and they will transform the treatment of disease and drug development, says Matthew Partridge

Stem cells
Stem cells are within a few years of reaching the medical mainstream
(Image credit: © Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Imagine being able to reverse blindness, cure multiple sclerosis (MS), or rebuild your heart muscles after a heart attack. For the past few decades, research into stem cells, the building blocks of tissues and organs, has raised the prospect of medical advances of this kind – yet it has produced relatively few approved treatments.

But that could be about to change, says Robin Ali, professor of human molecular genetics of King’s College London. “Just as gene therapy went from being a fantasy with little practical value to becoming a major area of treatment,” stem cells are “within a few years of reaching the medical mainstream.” What’s more, developments in synthetic biology, the process of engineering and re-engineering cells, could make stem cells even more effective.

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Dr Matthew Partridge
Shares editor, MoneyWeek

Matthew graduated from the University of Durham in 2004; he then gained an MSc, followed by a PhD at the London School of Economics.

He has previously written for a wide range of publications, including the Guardian and the Economist, and also helped to run a newsletter on terrorism. He has spent time at Lehman Brothers, Citigroup and the consultancy Lombard Street Research.

Matthew is the author of Superinvestors: Lessons from the greatest investors in history, published by Harriman House, which has been translated into several languages. His second book, Investing Explained: The Accessible Guide to Building an Investment Portfolio, is published by Kogan Page.

As senior writer, he writes the shares and politics & economics pages, as well as weekly Blowing It and Great Frauds in History columns He also writes a fortnightly reviews page and trading tips, as well as regular cover stories and multi-page investment focus features.

Follow Matthew on Twitter: @DrMatthewPartri