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RAS BiologyОнтогенез Russian Journal of Developmental Biology

  • ISSN (Print) 0475-1450
  • ISSN (Online) 3034-6266

The Discovery of Blood Stem Cells: A New Perspective on Vera Danchakoff and Her Research

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PII
S0475145025030028-1
DOI
10.31857/S0475145025030028
Publication type
Article
Status
Published
Authors
Kirill Rossiianov
  • Affiliation: Institute for the History of Science and Technology of Russian Academy of Sciences
Volume/ Edition
Volume 56 / Issue number 3
Pages
106-119
Abstract
In this article, I analyze the outstanding contribution of Russian-American researcher Vera Danchakoff (1879–1950) — her pioneering work on the blood stem cells and on the plasticity of embryonic development. I argue that, working along the same lines, as the Russian histologist Alexander Maximov, Danchakoff described the unique properties of the “polyvalent” (pluripotent) stem cells, and was, in fact, the first author who used the term “stem cell” in its modern meaning in her 1917 publication. Developing the idea of polyvalent cell differentiation, she applied it to embryonic development in her research on the cultivation of human embryonic tissues on the chorioallantoic membrane of chicken. I show that these experiments, which Danchakoff conducted during her stay in Soviet Russia in 1926–1932, were formative for her later research on the problem of sex determination and the bipotentiality of primordia of the gonads and sexual organs.
Keywords
стволовые клетки история эмбриологии клеточная биология пластичность индивидуального развития
Date of publication
18.09.2025
Year of publication
2025
Number of purchasers
0
Views
17

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