A group of UK researchers has managed to grow lung cells in the laboratory using mouse embryo stem cells - cells that can potentially develop into a wide range of different tissues. Team leader Anne Bishop, of the Imperial College Centre for Tissue Engineering, presented the findings at a recent stem cell conference held in London.
The scientists took stem cells from an early mouse embryo and grew them under conditions known to promote the growth of cells that line the surface of the lungs. After a few days, the cells began to grow into more specialised lung cells, including alveolar cells (found in the areas where oxygen and carbon dioxide are delivered and removed from the body respectively). The team now want to find out exactly which nutrients triggered the growth of the alveolar cells, reports last week's New Scientist.
The findings may eventually lead to new treatments for lung diseases such as emphysema, either using lung cell transplants or by injecting the necessary growth-promoting factors. Robin Lovell-Badge, of the National Institute for Medical Research in London, said he thought it was the first time lung cells had been created in this way. 'It's one case where use of embryonic stem cells is particularly exciting' he said.
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