First bioartificial heart may signal end of organ shortage

January 14, 2008

The world’s first beating, retooled “bioartificial heart” is described today in the journal Nature Medicine by University of Minnesota researchers in research that could pave the way to a new treatment for the 22 million people worldwide who live with heart failure.

The team took a whole heart and removed cells from it. Then, with the resulting architecture, chambers, valves and the blood vessel structure intact, repopulated the structure with new cells. (Telegraph)