Stem cell research was used to create human kidney by scientists at the Edinburgh University.
The organs were created artificially in a laboratory and are about the size of kidneys in a fetus. They were created with both human amniotic fluid and animal fetal cells.
''It sounds a bit science fiction-like but it's not,” Physiologist Jamie Davies, a professor at Edinburgh University, told The Telegraph. ''The idea is to start with human stem cells and end up with a functioning organ. 'We have made pretty good progress with that. We can make something that has the complexity of a normal, fetal kidney.''
By creating stem cell kidneys, scientists could provide the organs for thousands waiting on transplant lists. If the patient’s own organs are used then they may not need to take immunosuppressant drugs to prevent rejecting another person’s kidneys.
''Freezing a few cells is cost-effective compared with the cost of keeping someone on dialysis for years,” Davis added. ''If you have got a bunch of stem cells sitting in a test tube, that is a long way from being a beautifully, anatomically organized organ like a kidney, which is quite a complicated structure."
Scientists say stem cell organs could be used on human in about 10 years.
''So we are working on how you turn cells floating about in liquid into something as precisely arranged as a kidney.''
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