A recent paper from researchers at the Manchester University has shared a new method using stem cells for growing fully function mini-kidneys that can filter blood to produce urine.  It is an incredible breakthrough that could save the lives of millions of people who need kidney transplants.

The researchers placed the kidneys into mice to test their function.  They found that the kidneys were able to filter the animal’s blood.  It’s the first time that fully-functional kidneys grown using stem cells have been successfully transplanted into an animal.

In this trial, the team grew the kidneys in a laboratory setting before transplanting them into mice for the final stages.  This is an innovative approach that has never been done before.

A fluorescent dye was used to track what was being filtered from the blood and passing into the kidney’s tubules.  As the lead researcher, Professor Kimber, explains “The tubule’s job is to selectively reabsorb key molecules, mainly salts but also things like glucose, to stop them being wasted, and we saw that as well.”

This research team is also the first to grow working nephrons using stem cells.  Nephrons are the branch-like parts of the kidney that filter blood on one side and collect waste on the other.  They are essential for the kidney to work.

Co-author Professor Adrian Woolf, explained the importance of growing kidneys using stem cells, saying: “Worldwide, two million people are being treated with dialysis or transplantation for kidney failure and sadly another two million die each year, unable to access these treatments.  So we are tremendously excited by this discovery – we feel it is a big research milestone which may one day help patients.”

If human trials are a success, this new technique could save the lives of millions of people worldwide.

Source: Functioning human mini-kidney grown from stem cells in mice for first time

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