Geron reports breakthrough in stem cell research

Geron stock got a big boost just days ago when researchers announced that they had coaxed embryonic stem cells into clusters that produced insulin in response to elevated levels of glucose. The work points to a potential cure for Type 1 diabetes, which had investors cheering up its stock by about 10 percent. Some analysts note that the company has been the subject of a considerable amount of press attention, which hasn't hurt its stock price.

"These studies show that the islet-like clusters contain the major cellular components of islets and are sensitive to glucose, the key sugar to which they must respond to be therapeutically beneficial," stated Anish Majumdar, Ph.D., the senior author of the paper. "Our major goal moving forward is to improve the purity, yield and maturational status of these cells to induce normoglycemia in animal models of diabetes."

- here's the report on Geron's work from TheStreet.com