Slashdot Mirror
OHSU Turns Mouse into Factory for Human Liver Cells
Oregon Health & Science University researchers have figured out how to turn a mouse into a factory for human liver cells that can be used to test how pharmaceuticals are metabolized. The technique, published in the journal Nature Biotechnology, could soon become the gold standard not only for examining drug metabolism in the liver, which helps scientists determine a drug's toxicity, but also can be used as a platform for testing new therapies against infectious diseases that attack the liver, such as hepatitis C and malaria.
Downside: after one of those treatments you'll have a craving for cheese and a fear of cats. Then again, for some people it might not be much of a difference ;)
A polar bear is a cartesian bear after a coordinate transform.
Now, if they'd just turn a rat into a factory for fava beans.
It's not offtopic, dumbass. It's orthogonal.
Does it matter if they don't like it? Scientists are doing this kind of thing (research on mice/rats, not successfully creating a factory for liver cells) all the time. If those PETA people are going to let scientists do research on them, fine, but if not they should STFU and let these scientists help sick people get better - I think that's much more important than making sure that a mouse gets to run around in a sewer. It is a bit 'mean' to research on them like this, sure, but if you keep with that line of reasoning then you just shouldn't ever eat anything, because it's all alive at some point, and we have taken advantage of even the vegetables by planting and harvested their organs.
"Angel of the Lord, what are these tortured screams?"
And the angel said unto me,
"These are the cries of the carrots,
the cries of the carrots.
You see, reverend Maynard, tomorrow is harvest day
and to them it is the holocaust."
And I sprang from my slumber drenched in sweat
like the tears of one millions terrified brothers
and roared,
"Hear me now,
I have seen the light,
they have a consciousness,
they have a life,
they have a soul.
damn you!
let the rabbits wear glasses,
save our brothers...can I get an amen?"
which is totally what she said
So this means I can drink as much beer as I want without fearing liver damage, right?!!
As they say, "Liver let die". Sorry.
...whose first thought was "Great, a spare liver on my desk."?
I think it's not healthy that your first association with "mouse" is an input device and not a furry rodent. Guess it's time to check whether that yellow ball is still on top of that blue room.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
isn't the Human Liver a factory for Human Liver cells ?
shouldn't they be doing research into organs that don't regenerate by themselves?
They're using their grammar skills there.