Stem cells are undifferentiated cells with the ability to grow and differentiate into specialized cells. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are differentiated mature somatic cells that have been reverted back to a stem cell-like state by the induced activation of the so-called Yamanaka factors (i.e. Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, c-Myc). Once in a stem cell-like state, iPSCs can potentially be converted into any cell type, making them useful in a variety of personalized medical therapies.
Archives: Acorn FAQ
Please allow for about 15 min per person for your session which includes time to process your collection and to set up your client account at Acorn. Starting in the month following your cell collection, and ongoing, you will be billed your monthly cell storage fee of $16 CAD.
Collecting a few plucked hairs from your head is very easy – most people say it feels like plucking an eyebrow. However, we always like to remind people that you need to have some hair on your head – even if only a small amount – for the cell collection session. So if you happen to be someone who shaves their head, you will need to grow just enough hair on a few areas of your head to allow for a set of tweezers to retrieve a few strands of hair. This can be as short as 0.5 cm in length or less and depending on how fast your hair grows this can be grown out fairly quickly. Please keep this in mind when you choose your cell collection date. Its also a good idea to come to your session with recently washed hair, to minimize the amount of hair product that you use, and to limit the hair accessories that you wear that day (elastics, clips, extensions etc…)
