Some salamanders have the ability to grow back lost limbs
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Amputees could one day regrow limbs and organs, according to scientists who have come close to discovering how salamanders grow back limbs they have lost
Experiments are being conducted at the Hanover Medical School in Germany on axolotl salamanders with the hope that one day their genes can be transported into humans who have lost limbs and organs.
Axolotl salamanders are even able to regenerate parts of their brain and spinal columns, leading to hopes that disabled people might one day benefit from the treatment if it can be replicated.
Scientists carrying out the tests in Hanover have noticed how once a leg has been amputated from the animal a layer of skin cells forms from the cells at the point of the incision. Scar tissue develops underneath leading to new tissue that begins to grow, including blood vessels, muscles, sinews, bones and nerves. The researchers have pinpointed a specific enzyme called amblox, which is crucial in the regeneration process.
Their aim is to create an artificial amblox enzyme, which is advanced enough to regrow human limbs and organs. Initial tests have begun on human skin cells and the first signs are promising; wounds have healed quicker and skin has grown back at a rapid rate. An actual breakthrough in the full growth of an amputated limb is still some way off though.
By James Massoud
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