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The web can be the basis for growing the heart

The web is amazing stuff. It is assumed that its features will find their application in electronics and the creation of ultra-strong fabrics. A recent study found another reason to take a closer look at the web - it can help grow new organs.

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Organ growing is one of the most difficult and promising areas of biomedicine. Just imagine, if scientists learn to grow full-fledged organs from a patient’s stem cells, this eliminates the terrible need for a long wait for a donor to appear in order to treat difficult patients. In addition, it will reduce the risk of rejection to zero.

One of the main problems arising in this direction is the search for building material for the growth of tissues of organs. The material must be non-toxic, should not interfere with cell growth and be rejected by the body.
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A recent study published in the journal Plosone claims that spidroin, the protein that underlies cobweb fibers, meets all the requirements when it comes to growing a new heart. This material has already proven itself in the cultivation of tendons and cartilage. Researchers at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology have concluded that spidroin grown in the laboratory on genetically modified yeast cells can be used to grow cardiomyocytes (muscle cells of the heart) that form the heart tissue.

For their experiments, researchers used rat neonatal stem cells. A layer of cardiac cells formed within 3-5 days. Subsequent experiments have shown that this material is able to shrink to the required rhythm and conduct electrical impulses in the same way that ordinary heart tissue does.

Most likely, it will take several more years to begin to fully use this technology. Of course, the “heart bonded with cobweb fibers” sounds a bit creepy, but it is worth recalling that this material is five times stronger than steel and twice as strong as nylon in elasticity.

Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/374907/


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