barbara
11-06-2011, 05:10 PM
Fight Aging Newsletter
Friday, November 4, 2011
A review paper on one of the trailing areas of tissue engineering -
lungs present a harder and more complex challenge than many other
organs: "End-stage lung disease is a major health care challenge. Lung
transplantation remains the definitive treatment, yet rejection and
donor organ shortage limit its broader clinical impact. Engineering
bioartificial lung grafts from patient-derived cells could
theoretically lead to alternative treatment strategies. Although many
challenges on the way to clinical application remain, important early
milestones toward translation have been met. Key endodermal
progenitors can be derived from patients and expanded in vitro.
Advanced culture conditions facilitate the formation of
three-dimensional functional tissues from lineage-committed cells.
Bioartificial grafts that provide gas exchange have been generated and
transplanted into animal models. Looking ahead, current challenges in
bioartificial lung engineering include creation of ideal scaffold
materials, differentiation and expansion of lung-specific cell
populations and full maturation of engineered constructs to provide
graft longevity after implantation in vivo. A multidisciplinary
collaborative effort will not only bring us closer to the ultimate
goal of engineering patient-derived lung grafts, but also generate a
series of clinically valuable translational milestones such as airway
grafts and disease models."
Friday, November 4, 2011
A review paper on one of the trailing areas of tissue engineering -
lungs present a harder and more complex challenge than many other
organs: "End-stage lung disease is a major health care challenge. Lung
transplantation remains the definitive treatment, yet rejection and
donor organ shortage limit its broader clinical impact. Engineering
bioartificial lung grafts from patient-derived cells could
theoretically lead to alternative treatment strategies. Although many
challenges on the way to clinical application remain, important early
milestones toward translation have been met. Key endodermal
progenitors can be derived from patients and expanded in vitro.
Advanced culture conditions facilitate the formation of
three-dimensional functional tissues from lineage-committed cells.
Bioartificial grafts that provide gas exchange have been generated and
transplanted into animal models. Looking ahead, current challenges in
bioartificial lung engineering include creation of ideal scaffold
materials, differentiation and expansion of lung-specific cell
populations and full maturation of engineered constructs to provide
graft longevity after implantation in vivo. A multidisciplinary
collaborative effort will not only bring us closer to the ultimate
goal of engineering patient-derived lung grafts, but also generate a
series of clinically valuable translational milestones such as airway
grafts and disease models."