The way I’m reading this is that we may have a new path to program stem cells without being dependent on umbilical cords and such. If you have more med schooling than me I’m sure the audience at large would appreciate further illumination.
I heard nothing about stem cells in med school. Between "cancer" and regenerative medicine, I just find the biology fascinating. I have major problems with human embryonic stem cell research. I could not do it for ethical reasons, but others have no such moral objections.
Knowledge could be gained when others engage in human embryonic stem cell research. Any knowledge gained was already bought by a human sacrifice. It will be published as sure as the day is long. I don't have a problem using that knowledge for therapeutic cloning with induced pluripotent stem cells harvested from the same patients with traumatic amputations or severed spinal cords.
They found a way to reprogram somatic cells. Using viral vectors originally to incorporate transcription factors, but lately avoiding viral vectors, they transformed differentiated somatic cells to a state that appears to be equivalent to human embryonic stem cells. They are called induced pluripotent stem cells. I posted articles about them using the keyword ipsc.