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In a first, fetal cell organoids generated from amniotic fluid, new study reports
Researchers at University College London reported Monday, in a first, that they had successfully generated fetal cell model organisms from amniotic fluid.
And into that fluid, a fetus is constantly sloughing off or peeing out cells, which provide genetic material that doctors can pull out with a needle and examine for signs of disease in a process called amniocentesis. Now, researchers working in the U.K. have discovered that some of those cells are still alive, and they can be grown up into three-dimensional organoids — mini lung, kidney, and small intestines — providing a possible new tool to study and even diagnose congenital fetal diseases. The cells that the researchers were able to identify are sometimes affected by congenital malformation, which is De Coppi’s main interest as a pediatric and fetal surgeon at UCL and Great Ormond Street Hospital.
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