LAB-GROWN KIDNEYS SHOW PROMISE

Lab-grown human kidneys are not yet on the horizon, but researchers believe they have taken the first steps in that direction. A team from Massachusetts General Hospital has engineered rat kidneys that functioned and produced urine following implantation. Though the organs were only marginally effective, the results indicate that researchers are on the right track. To create the organs, researchers first stripped rat kidneys of their cells and then seeded the remaining collagen scaffolds with a combination of human and rat cells. More… Discuss