Spinal muscular atrophy is the most common cause of childhood death caused by a genetic mutation. This disease has no cure, and affects the nerves in an area of the spinal cord, breaking the link between brain and the muscles, meaning they can't be used and become wasted or atrophied.

An international team led by University of Wisconsin- Madison was able to create the first human model for studying a devastating nerve disease. Researchers took skin cells from a child with spinal muscular atrophy and turned them into stem cells - which have the power to grow into any kind of tissue in the body - and then into nerve cells. Then researchers used chemicals to coax the stem cells made from the skin of the boy with the disease to turn into nerve cells. Researchers found that when these were grown in the lab, they quickly started to die.

Team lead Prof Clive Svendsen said, "Now we can start from the beginning of development and replay the disease process in the lab dish."