German researchers claim that cells taken from men's testicles could serve to growing certain types of adult cells or tissues.  

The breakthrough, which was reported in the Oct. 8 early online edition of the journal Nature, may be a substitute to create powerful stem cells that may be used as a sort of repair system for the body of male patients with difficult illnesses. Scientists currently produce stem cells as a result of taking them out from embryos or by genetically controlling adult cells in order to make them pluripotent, Bloomberg reported.

Thomas Skutella, professor at the Center for Regenerative Biology and Medicine in Tuebingen in Germany and colleagues said they were able to turn the germline cells into several adult cells, but not other types. The cells researchers used were extracted from whole testicles, despite the fact that part of these was functional.

Previous research disclosed other methods to reprogram other types of adult cells into stem cells. The question that rises is whether testis-derived stem-cells are better or not. As said by Joshua M. Hare, MD, director of the interdisciplinary stem cell institute at the University of Miami, one can’t know for sure yet.

In any case, the new approach in the scientific field is a “breathtaking result,” according to George Daley, a researcher at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and at Children's Hospital Boston, a result that could be really helpful in growing personalized replacement tissues.