Stem cell research has resulted in several important breakthroughs in medicine, such as rebuilding the larynx and regenerating spinal cord connectors.
Now the liver, one of the most highly sought after organs on the donor
transplant list, could get some serious stem cell assistance as well. A
team of scientists led by Takanori Takebe of Yokohama City University
has successfully created a miniature version of the human liver with the
help of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC), which are derived from
adult somatic cells. They developed the iPSC into generalized liver
cells called hepatocytes, at which point the researchers mixed in
endothelial cells and mesenchymal stem cells, left the petri dishes
alone for a couple days, and voila -- an extremely tiny version of a
human liver, said to be the first-ever functional human organ grown from
stem cells, was born.
The liver "buds," as they're known, measure five millimeters long and
are the sort you would find in human embryos shortly after
fertilization. When implanted in mice, the baby livers managed to
perform all the functions of their adult equivalents. The researchers'
next step would be to generate liver buds that are a touch closer to
normal liver tissue -- like the addition of bile ducts -- and to see if
they can mass produce them by the tens of thousands. Don't go wasting
your liver just yet though, as it'll likely be years before the likes of
you and me will be able to have a lab-grown liver in our bodies. In the
meantime, check out the time-lapse video after the break to see a young
liver bud take shape in a petri dish.
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