For the First Time: Lab-Grown Bone Tissue Injected in Arm

Human bone tissue grown in the lab from stem cells of the patient was injected in the arm to facilitate growth of the injured bone.

Highlights

Stem cells in fat tissue were grown under sterile conditions to form bone tissue.
The semi-liquid bone graft was then injected to the patient in need of the transplant.
The injected cells multiply until sufficient material is created to fill the missing area.

A 40-year-old man who suffered significant bone loss in his arm was injected with semi--liquid live human tissue. The bone tissue was grown from his own fat cells and was later transplanted into the patient’s arm.

The patient had lost his arm after a car accident and underwent surgeries which were unsuccessful.

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‘The injectable bone graft involves growing bone under sterile laboratory conditions from stem cells in fat tissue taken from the patient in need of the bone transplant.’

Tissue Engineering Technology

Bonus BioGroup based in Israel introduced the lab-grown semi-liquid bone graft. In a clinical trial done in 2016, the bone graft was grown from the patient’s own fat cells and was injected into the jaws of 11 people to repair bone loss. The material hardened in a couple of months and merged with the existing bone to complete the jaw.

The technique involves growing bone under sterile laboratory conditions from stem cells in fat tissue taken from the patient in need of the bone transplant.

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After two weeks, the bone graft is transported from the company’s lab and production facility to the medical center performing the transplantation in a ready-to-use syringe. Over time, the injected cells multiply until sufficient material is created to fill the missing area.

Stem Cells Grown Into Bone Tissue

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The same technique was now followed to inject the tissue in the arm. Emek Medical Center’s head of orthopedic surgery, Dr. Nimrod Rozen, member of the Bonus BioGroup’s scientific advisory board said, “The technology we developed allows us to grow a bone that is based on a patient’s biological tissue, so there is no danger that the patient’s body will reject the implant.”

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"For the first time worldwide, reconstruction of deficient or damaged bone tissue is achievable by growing viable human bone graft in a laboratory, and transplanting it back to the patient in a minimally invasive surgery via injection," said Chief Executive Shai Meretzki. The injectable bone-graft technique is better than the traditional bone grafts which are complicated surgical procedures that are not always successful and require a long recovery process.

“The special features of the implants enable preservation of cell properties during implantation and the creation of a high-quality bone functioning in the transplanted area,” he said.

Source-Medindia