OHSU Turns Mouse into Factory for Human Liver Cells

Oregon Health & Science University researchers have figured out how to turn a mouse into a factory for human liver cells that can be used to test how pharmaceuticals are metabolized. The technique, published in the journal Nature Biotechnology, could soon become the gold standard not only for examining drug metabolism in the liver, which helps scientists determine a drug's toxicity, but also can be used as a platform for testing new therapies against infectious diseases that attack the liver, such as hepatitis C and malaria.

Won't somebody please think of the laptops?

[Anonymous Coward]

Those of us with a touchpad or trackpoint seem to be out of luck.

Downside...

[Moraelin]

Downside: after one of those treatments you'll have a craving for cheese and a fear of cats. Then again, for some people it might not be much of a difference ;)

Good News for Hannibal Lecter

[Ohreally_factor]

Now, if they'd just turn a rat into a factory for fava beans.

Booze

[AkumaReloaded]

So this means I can drink as much beer as I want without fearing liver damage, right?!!

Liver let die

[dotslashdot]

As they say, "Liver let die". Sorry.

Re:Booze

[DaveCar]

I was hoping that might be the case too.

You'll probably need to have a mouse grafted on under your right arm though :(

Re:Downside...

[hcdejong]

That's not so bad. It's the urge to take over the world that really causes problems.

Re:Downside...

[BakaHoushi]

Egad, BRILLIANT hcdejong!

Oh, wait, no, no... What if our Earth-conquering desires are constantly defeated by a combination of poor luck, gross incompetence, underestimating and overestimating the competence of the general public, and lack of communication? ...Troz!

Am I the only one...

[Opportunist]

...whose first thought was "Great, a spare liver on my desk."?

I think it's not healthy that your first association with "mouse" is an input device and not a furry rodent. Guess it's time to check whether that yellow ball is still on top of that blue room.