Functional Lung Tissue-Engineered in Rat Model
A recent landmark report from researchers at Yale and Duke universities heralds a significant advance towards the tissue engineering of replacement lungs. Decellularised donor lungs repopulated with progenitor cells were matured in vitro and then implanted into living rats, where the tissue participated in gas exchange to an extent functionally approaching that of native lung tissue. This study represents a crucial proof-of-principle that the decellularisation/repopulation approach can be effective in another complex organ.
