Stem cells from human fat may treat heart disease

STEM cells taken from human fat can be transformed into smooth muscle cells, offering a way to treat many kinds of heart disease, gastrointestinal and bladder ills, US researchers reported this week.

While the experiment does not quite offer a way to turn a pot belly into a flat stomach, the researchers said the transformed cells contracted and relaxed just like smooth muscle cells.

These cells help the heart beat and blood flow, push food through the digestive system and make bladders fill and empty, the researchers reported.