Finding of STEMIN (STEM CELL INDUCING FACTOR) for feasible reprogramming in plants

(National Institutes of Natural Sciences) Researchers in Japan found that induction of the transcription factor STEM CELL INDUCING FACTOR 1 (STEMIN1) in leaves directly changes leaf cells into stem cells in the moss Physcomitrella patens. This discovery of a direct stem cell inducing factor will facilitate the further elucidation of the molecular mechanisms underlying stem cell formation in land plants.