Science Has Figured Out How to Give You a Bonus Liver

"More than 17,500 patients are living on the waiting list at any given time for a liver transplant. Unfortunately, there aren't enough of the available, donated organs to go around, leading to a critical and frequently deadly backlog. Roughly 10% of the patients on that waiting list die each year while waiting for the prospect of a new organ."

"If not enough livers are available, then a bundle of cells that replicate the organ's function might be able to take some of the burden instead. And the method wouldn't even require surgery, at least in theory-the cells are merely injected into the body, which is about the least invasive way imaginable for a patient to potentially receive a new lease on life."

"The liver is one of the body's most crucial and frankly incredible organs, playing roughly 500 essential roles that are known to medical science, and probably more that we still don't understand. Among other things, it regulates functions like blood clotting and blood purification, and helps to break down and metabolize medication."

Over 17,500 patients await liver transplants, with approximately 10% dying annually due to organ scarcity. A new study suggests engineered cell bundles could replicate liver function without surgery, requiring only injection into the body. The liver performs roughly 500 known essential functions including blood clotting, purification, and medication metabolism. It uniquely regenerates and heals itself, even recovering from partial removal by living donors. However, liver disease impairs hepatocytes' ability to function and regenerate. Injectable satellite livers represent a potentially life-saving, minimally invasive solution for patients with hepatitis, cirrhosis, and other liver conditions.

Read at Jezebel