Molecular 'cocktail' transforms skin cells into beating heart cells

A new method has been devised that allows for the more efficient -- and, importantly, more complete -- reprogramming of skin cells into cells that are virtually indistinguishable from heart muscle cells. These findings, based on animal models, offer new-found optimism in the hunt for a way to regenerate muscle lost in a heart attack. Heart disease is the world's leading cause of death, but recent advances in science and medicine have improved the chances of surviving a heart attack. In the Unite...