What’s in a heartbeat?

There was one high school biology lesson I refused to take part in. I’ll never forget walking into the classroom that day. The smell was almost overwhelming. In pairs, we were given a clear plastic bag full of a foulsmelling liquid and a preserved dead rat. Over the next few lessons, we were going to dissect our rat to learn about mammalian anatomy.

I objected so strongly to animals being used this way that my teacher excused me from class, and instead I explored which plants on the school grounds produced cyanide.

It’s ironic that of all the people I went to school with, I am the one who does medical research using mice. And while I may not be a teenager any more, I have the same values and am committed to finding more humane ways to do my research, including alternatives to mice.

I was excited to read recently that Australian scientists have been able to grow thousands of miniature heart muscles in the lab, and they beat and behave just like human hearts.

The scientists used these ‘‘hearts’’ to screen more than 100 potential drugs and found two that look like they might be able to regenerate damaged heart tissue.

These mini hearts are part of growing number of ‘‘organ-on-a-chip’’-type developments that we hope will one day eliminate the need for much of the current use of animals in research and testing. There are even mini brains that mimic the interconnectivity of neurons in the brain.

I think these mini organs have implications beyond drug discovery and development. They challenge our understanding of what constitutes life.

The Justice Minister, Andrew Little, is proposing to reform New Zealand’s abortion legislation, which currently has this medical procedure classified as a crime unless approved by two certifying consultants on very specific grounds. Those who oppose reforming the law believe that life begins at conception and that every foetus has the right to life.

I believe every woman has the right to choose what happens to her body. And just because a foetus that weighs about as much as a handful of raisins has a beating heart, it shouldn’t have more rights than the woman it is growing inside. After all, those same cells can beat in the lab, too.

These mini organs challenge our understanding of what constitutes life.