Enginear

One day it may be possible to grow new body parts from human cells in the laboratory but until then we must rely on the ingenious use of other materials. Pictured is an artificial ear grown in a mould that was first injected with collagen from rats’ tails and then seeded with cartilage cells from cows’ ears. The collagen serves as a scaffold upon which the cartilage grows. When the ear has been trimmed and cultured for a few days, it becomes more lifelike and efficient than the polymer foam ears that are currently available. Developed for children born with an ear deformity known as microtia, this technique could be ready for clinical use in about three years’ time. Eventually, the research may be applied more widely to other body parts such as the nose, windpipe and the padding in bone joints.

Written by Mick Warwicker

Mick Warwicker

Writer

A freelance communications consultant and writer, Mick specialises in science and education. A science graduate and award-winning print and broadcast journalist, he was Head of Communications at Newcastle University from 2000–2011.

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• Alyssa Reiffel
• Weill Cornell Medical College, USA
• Originally published under a Creative Commons Attribution license
• Published in PLoS ONE 8(2): e56506