Candy Coating Inspires Lab-Grown Blood Vessels 25
sciencehabit writes "Scientists have developed a water-soluble carbohydrate glass based on a decoration used on cakes and lollipops. The material can be cast into a variety of shapes, is completely nontoxic, and, when it has done its job, will dissolve naturally in the moist environment of lab-grown tissue, leaving behind spaces that can carry blood to cells. The advance solves one of the major problems of growing new organs in the laboratory."
LAB GROWN ORGANS!!!! (Score:3)
WITH FREE DIABEETUS INSIDE!!!
It's not corn syrup (Score:2)
United States Patent 5,356,635: "wherein the carbohydrate comprises sucrose, lactose, maltose or cellobiose"
So it should be relatively biologically inter, not triger IgE reactions due to allergies, and will most likely be dissolved out prior to implantation, in any case, unless there's a pressing time requirement that necessitates it going in before the scaffolding is totally gone.
Re: (Score:2)
Still a long way (Score:2)
This still is a long way from complex superstructures like kidneys and lungs, but it's a promising development.
Re: (Score:2, Funny)
Thanks for that informative post. Taught me a lot.
Sweet! (Score:3)
Oh come on. You know someone had to say it.
Re: (Score:2)
The TFA had this title: "A sweet way to grow blood vessels", so I am not sure what you added to the mix.
Yummm.... (Score:2)
Vampire snacks! Like cherry-filled chocolates.
Everybody sing (Score:3, Funny)
Who can take a stem cell (background singers echo: The Candy Man)....
Re:Everybody sing (Score:5, Funny)
Who can take a stem cell... And cover it with goo?
Whip it in a blender and make a liver made for you?
The candy man! The candy man can!
Who make IPS culture, and slather it with Gly....
Shape it in a scaffold and make a kidney for some guy?
The candy man! The candy man can!
Video of 3D Sugar Printing for this project (Score:5, Informative)
Who puts cotton candy on cakes and lollopops? (Score:3)
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16599-cotton-candy-makes-sweet-blood-vessel-copies.html
I saw a video of this on the newscast, and they guy had a $50 cotton candy machine on his lab table with a "DO NOT EAT" sign attached.
Re: (Score:2)
Re:A blood vessel isn't just empty space though (Score:4, Informative)
A blood vessel isn't just empty space though. It has walls that expand and contract in response to various conditions. I assume normal vessels also resist intrusion.
As I read it this process does one of the following:
- reserves the space for the blood vessels to grow into a bit later (and perhaps marks it with growth factors to encourage vascularization along the paths.)
- provides a scaffold around which the blood vessels form, then dissolves away to leave the resulting vessels open.
So, how many... (Score:2)
...licks does it take to get to the center of a heart attack?
Built with a RepRap! (Score:1)
Carbohydrate glass, you say? (Score:2)