The Tissue Simulation

An article on PBS offered up surprising information about scientists growing human tissue.  According to the article, The Body Shop, human skin is being grown to aid burn victims.  It's even been approved by the U.S. food and drug administration and the Vatican!  Joseph Vacanti created a scaffold to grow the human tissue on so that its shape could be controlled and customized. The scientists will start growing the skin and then implant it under the skin on a hairless mouse that's specially bred not to reject human skin.
The article also talks about growing organ tissues.  Apparently, organ tissues grow better in microgravity.  Tissues such as liver tissues grow better in a bioreacter designed to keep cells in a sort of constant free fall.
These scientists haven't yet created complete organs, just pieces of the tissues, but this is a huge step towards the future of medical science.  Soon they'll be growing entire legs!!!  But maybe not on a mouse's back.  As cool as the ear thing looks.
This article was really quite amazing.  It was full of information about the tissue growing.  Maybe a few more years from now these scientists will have made a human heart!  This will change the way we do prosthetics, no more weird plastic or metal legs, people could get real legs that grow with them!
And perhaps that's a little too distant of a dream.  But this is a really good start.  Maybe Mr. Ludwig will let us grow our own human tissue in class!! (Hint, hint, nudge, nudge.)  We could grow rats and everything.