Medicine's Cutting Edge: Re-Growing Organs

The Future Is Here: Regenerative Powder, Ink Jet Heart Cells And Custom-Made Body Parts

(CBS)  Imagine re-growing a severed fingertip, or creating an organ in the lab that can be transplanted into a patient without risk of rejection. It sounds like science fiction, but it's not. It's the burgeoning field of regenerative medicine, in which scientists are learning to harness the body's own power to regenerate itself, with astonishing results. Correspondent Wyatt Andrews brings you to the scientific frontier.

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Three years ago, Lee Spievack sliced off the tip of his finger in the propeller of a hobby shop airplane.

What happened next, Andrews reports, propelled him into the future of medicine. Spievack's brother, Alan, a medical research scientist, sent him a special powder and told him to sprinkle it on the wound.

"I powdered it on until it was covered," Spievack recalled.

To his astonishment, every bit of his fingertip grew back.

"Your finger grew back," Andrews asked Spievack, "flesh, blood, vessels and nail?"

"Four weeks," he answered.

Andrews spoke to Dr. Steven Badylak of the University of Pittsburgh's McGowan Institute of Regenerative Medicine and asked if that powder was the reason behind Spievack's new finger tip.

"Yes, it is," Badylak explained. "We took this and turned it into a powdered form."

That powder is a substance made from pig bladders called extracellular matrix. It is a mix of protein and connective tissue surgeons often use to repair tendons and it holds some of the secrets behind the emerging new science of regenerative medicine.

"It tells the body, start that process of tissue regrowth," said Badylak.

Badlayk is one of the many scientists who now believe every tissue in the body has cells which are capable of regeneration. All scientists have to do is find enough of those cells and "direct" them to grow.

"Somehow the matrix summons the cells and tell them what to do," Badylak explained. "It helps instruct them in terms of where they need to go, how they need to differentiate - should I become a blood vessel, a nerve, a muscle cell or whatever."

If this helped Spievack's finger regrow, Badylak says, at least in theory, you should be able to grow a whole limb.

Advances That Go Beyond Theory

In his lab at Wake Forest University, a lab he calls a medical factory, Dr. Anthony Atala is growing body parts.

Atala and his team have built, from the cell level up, 18 different types of tissue so far, including muscle tissue, whole organs and the pulsing heart valve of a sheep.

"And is it growing?" Andrews asked.

"Absolutely," Atala said, showing him, "All this white material is new tissue."

"When people ask me 'what do you do,' we grow tissues and organs," he said. "We are making body parts that we can implant right back into patients."

Dr. Atala, one of the pioneers of regeneration, believes every type of tissue already has cells ready to regenerate if only researchers can prod them into action. Sometimes that prodding can look like science fiction.

Emerging from an everyday ink jet printer is the heart of a mouse. Mouse heart cells go into the ink cartridge and are then sprayed down in a heart shaped pattern layer by layer.

Dr. Atala believes it's a matter of time before someone grows a human heart.

"The cells have all the genetic information necessary to make new tissue," Atala explained. "That's what they are programmed to do. So your heart cells are programmed to make more heart tissue, your bladder cells are programmed to make more bladder cells."

Atala's work with human bladder cells has pushed regenerative medicine to a transformational breakthrough.

In this clinical trial at Thomas Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia, Dr. Patrick Shenot is performing a bladder transplant with an organ built with this patient's own cells. In a process developed by Dr. Atala, the patient's cells were grown in a lab, and then seeded on a biodegradable bladder-shaped scaffold.

Eight weeks later, with the scaffold now infused with millions of regrown cells, it is transplanted into the patient. When the scaffold dissolves, Dr. Shenot says what's left will be a new, functioning organ.

"The cells will differentiate into the two major cells in the bladder wall, the muscle cells and the lining cells," he explained. "It's very much the future, but it's today. We are doing this today."

Repairing The Wounded

Today, one of the biggest believers in regeneration is the United States military, which is especially interested in the matrix that regrew Lee Spievack's finger.

The Army, working in conjunction with the University of Pittsburgh, is about to use that matrix on the amputated fingers of soldiers home from the war.

Dr. Steven Wolf, at the Army Institute of Surgical Research, says the military has invested millions of dollars in regenerative research, hoping to re-grow limbs, lost muscle, even burned skin.

"And it's hard to ignore this guys missing half his skin, this guy's missing his leg," Wolf said. "You start asking the question, is there somebody out there with the technology that can do this for us?"

"You mean regrow the tissue?" Andrews asked.

"The answer," Wolf said, "is maybe."

At the burn unit at the Brooke Army Medical center, the very idea of regeneration brings a glimmer of hope.

Army Staff Sgt. Robert Henline was the only survivor of an IED attack on his Humvee north of Baghdad.

"It's a great idea," Henline said, talking with Andrews about the military's investment into the new technology. "If they can come up with something that's less painful and can heal it with natural growth, without all this scarring, it's definitely something to check into."

Regeneration Race Goes Global

Several different technologies for harnessing regeneration are now in clinical trials around the world. One machine, being tested in Germany, sprays a burn patient's own cells onto a burn, signaling the skin to re-grow.

Badylak is about to implant matrix material - shaped like an esophagus - into patients with throat cancer.

"We fully expect that this material will cause the body to re-form normal esophageal tissue," Badylak said.

And in a clinical trial at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, patient Mary Beth Babo is getting her own adult stem cells injected into her heart, in hopes of growing new arteries. Her surgeon is Dr. Joon Lee.

"It's what we consider the Holy Grail of our field for coronary heart disease," Lee said.

The Holy Grail, because if stem cells can re-grow arteries, there's less need for surgery.

"It's a big difference from open heart surgery to this," said Babo. "If people don't have to go through that, this would be the way to go ... if it works."

The Business Of Regeneration

Corporate America, meanwhile, already believes regeneration will work. Investment capital has been pouring in to commercialize and mass produce custom-made body parts.

The Tengion Company has bought the license, built the factory, and is already making those bladders developed at Wake Forest that we told you about earlier.

"We're actually building a very real business around a very real and compelling patient need," said Dr. Steven Nichtberger, Tengion's CEO.

Tengion believes regeneration will soon revolutionize transplant medicine. Transplant patients, instead of waiting years for a donated organ, will ship cells off to a lab and wait a few weeks to have their own re-grown.

"I look at the patients who are on the waitlist for transplant," said Nichtberger. "I look at the opportunity we have to build bladders, to build vessels, to build kidneys. In regenerative medicine, I think it is similar to the semi-conductor industry of the 1980s, you don't know where it's going to go, but you know it's big."

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For more on regenerative medicine and organ transplants, check out:

The McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine.

The non-profit United Network for Organ Sharing.

The non-profit Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network.

The non-profit organ and tissue donation group, Gift Of Life Organ Donation.

Wake Forest University.

Tengion Company.

[skyk-2009]

Of course! Wouldn''t it be nice if WE the PEOPLE could earn enought to afford it. Better yet wouldn''t it be great if we could just afford basic Insurance to protect our families?? As a young man raising my family I had good insurance.. in fact that was in the days when just about everyone had insurance. But that was before Free Trade and "Trickle Down".

[hummer49tx]

Does anyone know of efforts to regenerate knee cartliage? My wife is bone on bone on both knees and is postponing surgury hoping for something like I saw on your show this AM. Please help this couple understand our options.

Thanks

[gboiter]

HAS THERE BEEN ANYTHING DONE IN THE WAY OF GROWING A NEW EYE? MY WIFE LOST HERS DUE TO AN INFECTION . THE EYE HAS SHRUNK DOWN TO ABOUT 1/2 SIZE. SHE IS BLIND IN THAT EYE.
THANKS FOR YOUR INFO

[hillary-news]

DONT COUNT ON EVER SEEING IT. DOCTORS AND HILLARY WOULD HAVE NOTHING TO EXPLOIT AND BLEED YOUR WALLETS WITH. AMA HAS KEPT USEFUL BENEFITS OF MAGNETS HIDDEN FOR OVER 100 YEARS WHILE THE REST OF THE WORLD BENEFITS.

AMA CAN GO TO H E L L!

[nothappyatall]

The technology is great, funny how it shows using PIG cells would regenerate human cells on this guy''s finger, goes to show we aren''t so different as many thought!

The other thing is, cost, this is great technology, BUT... if the cost to regenerate your finger is $250,000 say, WHO can afford that? Oh yes, the RICH can, but I''m talking about the realworld. people- the working stiffs who make $50k a year- the surgery may as well be a trip to mars.
This technology isn''t going to benefit 95% of the population due tothe costs, and those without insurance would have no hope of getting it.

[tbweb]

Doctors really are the closest thing to God.

[zootallures2]

What a crock.

[caliengineer]

Read "The Body Electric" by Robert Becker. He did a lot of research. a child 9 or younger can regrow a fingertip.

God regrows arms, hands, feet, legs, and even eyes in response to prayer. The media does not bring you this... it would reduce their power base as people returned to God.

[mediapreachr]

No health care,no dental care,gas and food prices are trough the roof(we have to bail out the bankers).
But we cannot pander to the rich enough.Who do you think has enough money to afford the scientific progress?
Usa-the country with"the best healthcare money can buy".

[drivelphobe]

callengineer...

Stop it. Praying has nothing to with anything except to perhaps make you feel better.

Give these scientists and physicians their due.

[jeff-fla]

-God regrows arms, hands, feet, legs, and even eyes in response to prayer. The media does not bring you this... it would reduce their power base as people returned to God.

Posted by caliengineer

Tell ya what. Cut your hand off and wait and see if "GOD" regrows it. You will spend the rest of your life handless

[beehive21-2009]

Technology is the future, we in America ,invent everything useful to the worlds progress,so, get busy, people and invent something useful to all.

[johngoodnews]

Now if I could just get some of that magic powder that grows healthy children if you sprinkle it on them.

[caineallen]

how fortunate for this company that the war is providing so many free test subjects. the hobby shop guy is from landen ohio.

[incog-nito]

Technology is the future, we in America ,invent everything useful to the worlds progress,so, get busy, people and invent something useful to all.

Posted by beehive21 at 02:52 PM : Mar 23, 2008

This is all good and well, but don''t get too big of a head. As the article clearly indicates, this research is being done in other countries as well. America is not the only country doing this.

[caineallen]

it''s finally coming out. a long time ago in the future some wierdedlyfreakish doods spliced pig dnaenomes with monkeyfartstuff and poof...bald monkeys. you know it''s why certain "religious" FOLK hate bacon.

[nothappyatall]

god regrows arms, hands, feet, legs, and even eyes in response to prayer.

Posted by caliengineer"

LOL yeah right, and I guess your magical Santa also protects and fixes priests and nuns- the most devout wind up just as injured and dead as the rest of us dumb sheeple here.
Like someone else said- cut your HAND off and come back here with progress pics of it''s growing back.

[Martha Z]

I''m surprised President Bush allowed the military to invest so much money on this!

[nothappyatall]

Just FYI, the very tip of a finger and nail can usually grow back on it''s own over time- IF there is a portion of the nailbed still there and the bone is mostly intact, it will never be as it was though, and may or may not have sensation.

[gaye5]

IF this is true, then imagine how Muslims would feel, I think that they would rather die than get something from pigs..oh what a shame...

[jpb_123]

How about growing me some hair cells! I''m missing quite a few on the top of my head.

[lynnleo-2009]

What a bunch of complainers! I guess they have never had a child or friend injured, wounded, or ill enough that could use a spare part. They''re probably not organ donors either. Send them a band from the Bill Guist Story! Oh ***, now I got to start over!
Lynn

[kuyote]

I can already see my email filling up with all the spam... "You can be like Ron Jeremy... just sprinkle some of this between your legs."

[ultracsic]

This material is called UBM (urinary bladder matrix. There are 12 patents on the material. It is made by a company called ACell, Inc. They have a website where you can see more info. www.acell.com

[singindick]

Cool! I''ll take a new one of everything!

Praise the Lord for Science!

[sanfelz]

The current Scientific American has a more detailed article on the same subject.

[mediapreachr]

Praised be!But,do you have the money to afford it?
You know,in some rich people''s eyes,if you don''t have 100 mil plus and no stock portfolio,you don''t qualify to be an american...

[ioweign]

Nothing with Bush DNA please...

[trishab4]

www.zeitgeistmovie.com

[mrmazerati]

Awesome. I''m going to have everything that falls apart replaced as I get older. Eventually, I''ll be like Mr. Burns on the Simpsons- and old, wrinkled, evil billionaire bent on taking over the world! Mua-ha-ha-ha-ha! Okay seriously, this is awesome stuff.

[timkris1]

Why is this not in every major newspaper or TV news report in the country? If one person can do it at home, not in a lab, but at home, then what are the other possiblitie? I would like to hear about the other successes and what the timeline is for major organs?

[usmcvn2]

Give Bush a new brain!

[mediapreachr]

Does anyone remember that movie-The Island-with Scarlett Johansson?

[ladyoamerica]

cool, maybe I''ll live to see the space age afterall =P

[Nero2341]

This is an amazing scientific discovery that offers a lot in the future. Science is progressing at an astonishing rate every since the Human Genome Project. They can create bladders and hearts, and best of all these organs can be transplanted in us humans, and since they are from our own cells, our bodies will not reject them :D They've already done skin graphs, replacing burn victims skin without taking big chunks for their legs. They can use stem cells (and now have found ways without using embryonic stem cells thanks to Bush (for you religious people out there)) to regenerate nerve cells and possibly help paraplegics walk again!! Oh I love all this stuff! If you guys want to know more there is this guy names Sam Rhine, he has a genetic update conference every year, and this year it was all about this stuff.

[saeeda1976]

it not just Muslims but Jew dont eat Pigs but eatting a oig and ussing there organ is somthing diffrent as all the cell would be taken out.... there is no cell therefore it is a fram.

[healthhavencom]

Here's an idea that could help: STOP fighting unnecessary wars.