Get the latest tech news

Artificial placenta: A new lifeline for premature babies?

Artificial placentas and wombs could save the lives of premature babies, but what ethical considerations must be addressed before human trials begin?

All three take their inspiration from an existing therapy called extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (Ecmo), a type of artificial life support that can help a person whose lungs and heart aren't functioning properly. Premature lambs maintained on the machine survived for 16 days before being safely transferred to mechanical ventilation"I wanted a platform that's readily available to most babies, and that could be used in existing neonatal intensive-care units," says Mychaliska. "We're now at a point where we can take a 500g [lamb] foetus and maintain it in what I would describe as a broadly normal physiological state for two weeks at a time," says Matt Kemp, professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at the National University of Singapore, who leads Eve.

Get the Android app