A team of local scientists says it's found through a joint study with U.S. researchers the reason embryonic stem cells are destroyed.

The finding resulted from three years of research by Chonbuk National University Professor Han Myung-kwan and Indiana University Professor Hal Broxmeyer.

The discovery is drawing attention as it could open the door to securing a large supply of embryonic stem cells.

Researchers led by Han and Broxmeyer found that an enzyme called “SIRT-One” regulates components that destroy stem cells. Usually, embryonic stem cells that have been in test tubes between six months and a year die out or easily become damaged.

Their findings were published in a recent edition of the scientific journal, Cell Stem Cell.