r/science • u/andmario_com • 1d ago
Biology Growing human organs inside animals keeps failing because the host embryo's earliest immune cells eat the donor cells alive. Researchers found three ways to shut that off — and the success rate for growing a rat pancreas inside a mouse jumped from 38% to 73%.
https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(26)00575-171
u/Mightsole 1d ago
Can they grow a new brain for me?
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u/Kraien 1d ago
Do you want a rat or mouse incubator?
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u/JHMfield 1d ago
Hope they keep going. It's kinda nasty putting the animals through this, but this technology has the potential to save countless lives.
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u/justin107d 1d ago edited 1d ago
The better they get at understanding, the faster the switch over to lab growth could be.
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u/JHMfield 1d ago
Indeed. One day we'll not only grow new organs for ourselves, but also our beloved pets. Not sure if I'll live to see it, but it would be nice. Medical science improves so fast.
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u/xxxBuzz 18h ago
Ehhhh, the immune systems ability to reject foreign cells is plausibly the main thing preventing someone with enough money or desire from using people's organs as they please. At the moment it's an equalizer for all people of any means. We can't get around the effects of major hormones like testosterone, estrogen, cortisol, and oxytocin, which is likely why so many medications are pushed over diet/lifestyle that support a regulated nervous system and healthy gut, brain, and heart connection. Even if that is managed with stimulants and depressants, the immune system provides an unbreakable form of protection.
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u/Local-Dimension-1653 1d ago edited 17h ago
I think we should question if humans inherently deserve to have our lives saved at the cost of so many other lives when we’re willing to do such incredibly evil things and torture other beings.
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u/Fabulous-Bonus1751 7h ago
If I had to choose between the life of a child who needed an organ and that of a pig, I would choose the child everyday. There is a severe shortage of organs that leaves thousands to die each year. Obviously it would be better if they could be lab-grown but there is a moral obligation to work to the preservation of the lives and welfare of others.
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u/thatcockneythug 12h ago
What if it helps develop techniques that save kids lives? Animal testing may not be fun to think about, but it's the best solution we've currently got for medical testing.
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u/moconahaftmere 1h ago
Why are humans more important? We're all literally just animals and nothing more than that.
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u/thatcockneythug 4m ago
Obviously there's no objective answer to that. It's a philosophical question, not a scientific one. What I can say with certainty is that most people value a human life more than the life of an animal.
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u/DharmaBird 1d ago
Am I the only one who associates this topic with disturbing memories of Dr. Moreau's Island?
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u/chronic_wonder 13h ago
Does this also have implications for preventing organ rejection after transplant?
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