A local team of scientists has discovered why adult stem cells age faster than embryonic stem cells.

Professor Kang Kyung-seon of Seoul National University’s College of Veterinary Medicine said Monday that his team has discovered that the “early aging” of adult stems is the result of an epigenetic coordinating mechanism and is not due to congenital changes, as is widely assumed.

Determining the reason why adult stem cells age early had been a major stumbling block in their use for treating diseases.

The team’s finding was published in the recent edition of the academic journal “Cellular and Molecular Life Science.”

The team’s research was funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology as well as the National Research Foundation.

The team is hoping that their latest discovery promotes the development of stem cell treatments.