Doctors can now grow human vocal cords in a lab
Used to be that if you damaged your vocal cords and needed a new set, doctors would have to shoot you full of immunosuppressants to keep your body from rejecting the cadaver-sourced replacements. Not anymore. Researchers at University of Wisconsin Medical School have published a preliminary study in the journal Science Translational Medicine wherein they successfully cultured 170 sets of vocal cords in the lab. These organs do not require the course of immunosuppressants that conventional transplants require. "We never imagined that we would see the impressive level of function that we did," study senior author Nathan Welham told Buzzfeed.
The team first collected cellular samples from four volunteers and one cadaver, then grew them on collagen scaffolds. Surprisingly, the sample cells required just two weeks to grow into functional vocal cords. Once they were complete, the researchers tested the bioengineered larynxes by grafting them onto the kidneys of lab mice to prove they wouldn't be rejected by their new hosts. The initial tests proved highly successful. Future surgeries could either replace existing scarred cord tissue with a new set of pipes or patch smaller damage with single flaps.
Next up, the team plans to hold longer immunoresponse trials in mice before moving on to tests with larger animals in the next few years. Since these larynxes are bioengineered, the FDA requires stringent animal testing before human trials can begin so it will likely be a while before the technique makes it to your doctor's office.
[Image Credit: FilmMagic via Getty]
