From skin to the treatment of diseases - the possibilities of iPS cell research in dermatology

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can be generated from different somatic cell types through ectopic expression of a set of transcription factors. iPSCs acquire all the features of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) including pluripotency and can thus give rise to any cell type of the body. iPSCs comparable with ESCs are amenable for the correction of gene mutations by homologous recombination. Patient-derived iPSCs may thus be an ideal source for studying diseases in vitro and for treating different disorders in the clinic. In this review, we summarize recent advances and possibilities of iPSC research with focus on the field of dermatology.