Finally, Some Quality Lab-Grown Urethras
Seen here looking suspiciously like krazy straws, lab-grown urethras created from patients' own bladder cells have been successful transplanted and functioning properly. Please note: this doesn't mean you should go act all loosey-goosey with your wiener-tube. It's probably still better to keep the original.
From these samples, the scientists isolated the cells they would need to grow the new structure that expels urine from the bladder.
These cells, needed to make the muscle, lining and supportive tissue, were nurtured and multiplied in the lab for weeks until they were plentiful enough for the job.They were then placed onto a biodegradable mesh that was shaped into a tube and sized to be a perfect fit for the patient.
After a week of incubation to allow the cells to take to the mesh, the lab-grown grafts were surgically transplanted into the patients.
Six years on the grafts are still doing well, looking and functioning exactly like a normal urethra
TMI aside, that's pretty amazing. Maybe one day they'll be able to do o-rings. And by o-rings I mean b-holes. And by b-holes I mean buttholes. And by buttholes I mean mine specifically because I burnt through mine with too much spicy food. What? It's not easy making a living winning hot-wing eating contests! Not on the roommate you share a bathroom with anyways. Derek -- if you're reading this I'd strongly recommend trying to hold it for at least another hour. Also, I'd flush without looking a couple times.
World's first tissue-engineered urethras hailed success [bbcnews]
Thanks to Nina, who's hoping scientists will learn how to lab-grow fingers so we can cut them off with a machete as a party trick and then get new ones. YES!
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