[In Context] 20 years of human iPS cells

The article describes the history and development of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. John Gurdon and Ian Wilmut laid the foundations of this research field - Gurdon demonstrated that a differentiated cell retains its full developmental potential, and Wilmut showed that an adult somatic cell could be reprogrammed through nuclear transfer. In 2006, Shinya Yamanaka and his colleague KT discovered that just four transcription factors could achieve the same transformation in a cell culture. This discovery was built upon the foundations of work by these significant scientists.