In a major step forward for tissue engineering, surgeons at Duke University have successfully implanted a bioengineered blood vessel into the arm of a patient with end-stage kidney disease. The procedure is the first of its kind in the US, and one of the first such efforts worldwide.
The engineered vein was created with donated human blood vessel cells, which are implanted onto a tubular, biodegradable scaffold. The scaffold supports those cells as they grow into a fully-formed vessel. Once the process is complete, the new vein is “scrubbed” of cellular properties that might trigger an immune response — and subsequent rejection — in a patient. Where kidney disease is concerned, the vessels could replace synthetic grafts used to link an artery to a vein for the process of hemodialysis.
via The Verge
