Christchurch Hospital’s Department of Paediatric Surgery has developed a way to grow smooth muscle cells which may lead to new treatment options for those with bowel diseases or defects.

Research lead by Dr. Atsushi Yoshida & Prof. Spencer Beasley has developed a technique that allows them to grow smooth muscle which exhibits muscle contractions similar that of bowel muscle. The breakthrough allows the researchers to convert pluripotent stem cells into sheets of this smooth muscle tissue.

“This is a significant breakthrough because until now being able to achieve contracting sheets of smooth muscle cells has proved very difficult,” – Dr. Atushi Yoshida Continue reading “Christchurch Hospital On It’s Way To Generating Smooth Bowel Muscle” »