Stem cells are cells that can develop into other forms of cells; Evans's cells could develop into entire mice. Evans eventually began altering the genetic material in the stem cells, creating mice that had genetic material from other creatures and could pass that material on to their offspring" (313). These findings, together with the research conducted separately by Capecchi and Smithies, enabled several teams of researchers to develop knockout mice (Lauerman 313).

In 2007, Evans received the Nobel Prize for medicine for these discoveries and the development of knockout mice that could be used to help scientists better understand and possibly cure diseases such as cystic fibrosis, heart disease, diabetes and cancer (Briton wins Nobel Prize 4). According to the editors of Environmental Health Perspectives (2005), the Comparative Mouse Genomics Centers Consortium (CMGCC) already has 54 transgenic or knockout mouse models developed at varying stages of construction and characterization (with...
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