Stem cell differentiation is the process in which stem cells (unspecialised cells) become specialised.
All stem cells contain the same DNA – they have the same genes. Stem cells specialise into different types of cells by activating different genes (they express different genes). The process can be broken down into simple steps:
1. Some of the genes in the stem cell are activated and others are inactivated. The genes that are activated (or inactivated) will determine the type of the cell it differentiates into.
2. The active genes are transcribed (an mRNA copy of them is made).
3. The mRNA strands are translated into proteins.
4. The proteins that are produced modify the cell determining its structure. Some of the proteins also control the processes within the cell. These changes mean that the cell has become specialised.
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