A team of biomedical engineers has demonstrated that it is possible to grow healthy new bone reliably in one part of the body and use it to repair damaged bone at a different location.

“We have shown that we can grow predictable volumes of bone on demand,” said V. Prasad Shastri, at Vanderbilt University. “And we did so by persuading the body to do what it already knows how to do.”

Today, in order to repair serious bone breaks surgeons have to remove small pieces of bone from a rib or hip and fuse them to the broken bone. The removal operation is painful and can lead to serious complications.

Shastri and colleagues decided to create a special zone on the surface of a healthy bone in hopes that the body would respond by filling the space with new bone.

Working with rabbits, the researchers found that this zone, dubbed the “in vivo bioreactor,” filled in with healthy bone in about six weeks. Besides, the new bone can be detached easily before it fuses with the old bone, leaving the old bone scarred but intact.

“The new bone actually has comparable strength and mechanical properties to native bone,” said Molly Stevens, at Imperial College in London. “And, since the harvested bone is fresh, it integrates really well at a recipient site.”

If the new method is confirmed in clinical studies, it will be possible to grow new bone for all types of repairs instead of removing it from existing bones. For people with serious bone disease, it may even be possible to grow replacement bone at an early stage and freeze it so it can be used when needed.

Via MIT News. Press Release.