Blockade of just one protein is sufficient to change skin cells into neurons.

Several research groups have already converted one cell type to another by adding, for example, specific genes. Now researchers led by Xiang-Dong Fu at the University of California, San Diego, have found another approach. They used small RNA molecules to repress an RNA-binding protein called PTB. Decreased levels of this protein led to the activation of genes that can convert skin cells to neurons. PTB influences the stability of RNA molecules and coordinates molecules called microRNAs that regulate gene expression.

The approach is a convenient way to reprogram other cell types to neurons, and provides a glimpse of the complex mechanisms involved in the control of gene expression.

Cell http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2012.11.045 (2013)