(Press-News.org)
Groundbreaking Discovery
What if the human body contained a natural bioreactor capable of regenerating vital organs? A collaborative team from Wenzhou Medical University, Nanjing University, and University of Macau has redefined the spleen’s potential, transforming it into a self-sustaining hub for organ regeneration, as published in Science Translational Medicine (May 21). This breakthrough could revolutionize treatments for type 1 diabetes and beyond.
Redesigning the Spleen: From Filter to "Living Bioreactor"
Confronting the dual challenges of poor islet survival and immune rejection in traditional transplants, researchers posed a bold question: Could we repurpose an underutilized organ to nurture new life?
Led by Prof. Lei Dong and Prof. Jian Xiao, the team engineered smart nanoparticles to reprogram the spleen’s microenvironment. "We’re essentially converting the spleen into a high-performance bioreactor," Dong explains. "By enhancing extracellular matrix support, accelerating blood vessel growth, and suppressing immune attacks, we’ve created an ideal niche for transplanted cells to thrive."
In a landmark achievement, human islet tissues successfully matured within the reprogrammed spleens of cynomolgus macaques, demonstrating compatibility with both human and animal-derived cells. This dual success paves the way for addressing organ shortages through cross-species solutions.
Why the Spleen? Three Biological Superpowers
Ample Space: A porous structure capable of hosting billions of cells
Nutrient-Rich Network: Direct blood supply to the liver’s portal vein mimics natural organ development
Low-Risk Adaptation: Remodeling occurs without disrupting critical bodily functions
Proven Track Record: Regenerating Organs Within the Body
The team’s spleen-based regeneration platform has achieved multiple milestones:
Functional Liver (Science Advances, 2020): Reprogrammed mouse spleens to perform liver functions
In Situ Regeneration (Gut, 2022): Grew liver tissues using gene editing, bypassing cell transplants
Thyroid Restoration (Advanced Science, 2024): Rebuilt hormone-producing tissues in animal models
Future Vision: A Personalized Organ Nursery
Next goal? Growing patient-specific organs from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). "The spleen acts like a living bioreactor embedded in our bodies," Dong describes. "With minimally invasive B-ultrasound-guided delivery, we could one day cultivate custom-made organs on demand."
While clinical applications require rigorous safety validation, this discovery challenges conventional wisdom. Once deemed "non-essential," the spleen now emerges as nature’s ultimate toolkit for regenerative medicine—proving that life’s most powerful solutions may have been inside us all along.
END
A leading cardiovascular disease researcher from Simon Fraser University is ringing the alarm on universal recommendations intended to improve heart health around the globe.
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide, with 80 per cent of deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. However, international heart-health guidelines are primarily based on research from high-income countries and often overlook upstream causes of CVD, says Scott Lear, a health sciences professor at SFU and the Pfizer/Heart & Stroke Foundation Chair in Cardiovascular Prevention Research.
“The world extends beyond high-income countries when we think ...
A new study from UBC Okanagan says students appear to be using generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) responsibly, and as a way to speed up tasks, not just boost their grades.
Dr. Meaghan MacNutt, who teaches professional ethics in the UBCO School of Health and Exercise Sciences (HES), recently published a study in Advances in Physiology Education. Published this month, the paper—titled Reflective writing assignments in the era of GenAI: student behaviour and attitudes suggest utility, not futility—contradicts ...
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Scientists aiming to advance cancer diagnostics have developed a machine learning tool that is able to identify metabolism-related molecular profile differences between patients with colorectal cancer and healthy people.
The analysis of biological samples from more than 1,000 people also revealed metabolic shifts associated with changing disease severity and with genetic mutations known to increase the risk for colorectal cancer.
Though there is more analysis to come, the resulting “biomarker discovery pipeline” shows promise as a noninvasive method of diagnosing colorectal cancer and monitoring disease progression, said Jiangjiang Zhu, ...
As the ocean warms across its temperate regions, kelp forests are collapsing and turf algae species are taking over. This shift from dense canopies of tall kelp to low-lying mats of turf algae is driving biodiversity loss and altering the flow of energy and nutrients through reef ecosystems.
It’s also fundamentally altering the chemical ecology of coastal ecosystems.
New research in Science, led by researchers at Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, has shown for the first time how turf algae release ...
The ability to engineer shapeshifting proteins opens new avenues for medicine, agriculture, and beyond.
Proteins catalyze life by changing shape when they interact with other molecules. The result is a muscle twitching, the perception of light, or a bit of energy extracted from food.
But this crucial ability has eluded the growing field of AI-augmented protein engineering.
Now, researchers at UCSF have shown it is possible to make new proteins that move and change shape like those in nature. This ability will help scientists engineer proteins in ...
Ancient sloths ranged in size from tiny climbers to ground-dwelling giants. Now, researchers report this body size diversity was largely shaped by sloths’ habitats, and that these animals’ precipitous decline was likely a result of increasing human pressures, which also triggered the extinction of the large-bodied ground-dwelling animals. Today’s small arboreal sloths are the last remnants of a once-diverse group, surviving likely because they inhabited secluded forest canopies and avoided direct human pressures, say the authors. While only two small, tree-dwelling genera survive today – confined largely to the tropical rainforests of South ...
As kelp forests decline in the warming coastal waters of the Gulf of Maine, turf algae – dense mats of red algae replacing kelp in many regions – may chemically interfere with kelp recovery, a new study reports. This complicates efforts to restore these crucial marine ecosystems. Kelp forests are ecologically and economically vital marine ecosystems that support diverse life forms and functions. However, despite their widely recognized importance, kelp forests worldwide are threatened with collapse due to climate change and/or overfishing. In many regions where kelp forests have disappeared, they have ...
Astronomers have identified a rare type of binary star system containing a rapidly spinning millisecond pulsar and a helium star companion, formed via common envelope evolution. Although such systems are rare, the authors of this new study predict that others do exist; they estimate there are 16 to 84 undiscovered examples in the Milky Way. Millisecond pulsars – rapidly spinning neutron stars that emit radio waves – achieve their extraordinary rotation rates by siphoning matter from a close stellar companion. The formation of these exotic binary systems is not fully understood, because it can involve a variety of complex processes. ...
Most relapsing fever bacteria that infect humans are spread by ticks, but Borrelia recurrentis is unique in being transmitted between humans via body lice. Now, new genomic evidence from ancient British remains suggests that B. recurrentis diverged from its tick-borne relatives and began adapting to transmission by lice between 6000 and 4000 years ago – coinciding with the widespread use of wool textiles by humans. The findings underscore how ancient DNA can illuminate the origins and evolution of infectious diseases and how pathogens like B. recurrentis have been shaped by human social transformations. Several pathogenic bacterial species that ...
Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute and UCL have analysed ancient DNA from Borrelia recurrentis, a type of bacteria that causes relapsing fever, pinpointing when it evolved to spread through lice rather than ticks, and how it gained and lost genes in the process.
This transition may have coincided with changes in human lifestyles, like living closer together and the beginning of the wool trade.
Borrelia recurrentis bacteria cause relapsing fever, an illness with many recurring episodes of fever, which is typically found ...
