Transplant hope as lungs grown from cells in lab

TRANSPLANT patients have a new hope after laboratory-grown lungs were found to work in pigs.

For the first time, scientists have successfully given pigs transplants made from the animals’ own cells.

The breakthrough means human patients could soon get transplants on demand, with no need to wait for a suitable donor. This could be possible within five to ten years, according to research led by the University of Texas.

Crucially, those receiving the treatment would be spared a lifetime on immunosuppressant drugs to stop their body rejecting the transplant organ, as it would be made from their own cells.

There are currently 338 people on the British waiting list for a lung transplant, with cystic fibrosis and emphysema patients forced to wait for a lifesaving operation.

In the new study, one of the pigs given a lung grown from its own cells survived for two months following the transplant operation, with the organ growing its own network of blood vessels.

Dr Joan Nichols, from the University of Texas Medical Branch, said: ‘It has taken 15 years to grow a working lung for such a large animal in the laboratory and successfully transplant it.

‘We overcame hurdles including leaky blood vessels and creating the complicated network of blood vessels needed. All this research is working towards a future where doctors will be able to take a CT scan of someone’s lung, create the patient- specific stem cells and bio-print a new one to use for their transplant.’

In 2014, Dr Nichols and her colleague, professor Joaquin Cortiella, were the first to grow a child-size lung made from human stem cells in the laboratory.

Before transplanting the organs, however, they needed to see if they could work in animal studies. Previous attempts in rodents have seen lungs fail after several hours because they do not develop the complex blood vessels needed for oxygen and blood flow.

But the latest study, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, found lab-grown lungs could grow their own blood vessels two weeks after being transplanted into pigs.

The success may be due to spending longer maturing the lungs in the laboratory. The pigs did not reject the organs, showed no signs of coughing or wheezing, and had no respiratory problems or pulmonary oedema caused by malfunctioning immature blood vessels.

Professor John Hunt of Nottingham Trent University said: ‘The authors clearly present this as a future model to possibly accelerate our progress towards lung transplants without the need for human donors in the future.

‘It is wonderful this team took on this research and the right kind of complex model, and have added to our knowledge in the field.’