Muscle implant "stretching-machine" (via Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center)
It turns out lab-engineered muscle responds to exercise in a similar way natural muscles do. A group of researchers from Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center's Institute for Regenerative Medicine conducted tests on four different groups of mice and found that exercised muscle implants showed significant recovery, developing and functioning better than their non-exercised counterparts.
To conduct the experiment, first scientist extracted muscle cells from mice to be multiplied in the lab. The multiplied cells were then applied to a strip of base material derived from pig bladder, a bio-compatible material, at a rate of one million per square centimeter. To exercise the cells they were stretched and relaxed three times a minute for the first five minutes of every hour, for five to seven days.
To see which method would yield the most benefits to muscle recovery, the scientist surgically removed about half of a large muscle (latissimus dorsi) in the backs of the mice. Then they observed the recovery process between four different groups of mice. One group had no implantation at all while a second had been implanted with a non-exercised muscle tissue. Additionally, one group was given the exercised muscle tissue while the last group was given the same exercised muscle tissue, except with extra cells added halfway through the exercise process. Reviewing the results, the researchers found that through exercising the muscle tissue before implanting it, the recovery process can be accelerated significantly.
When the scientist started their project, their goal was to accelerate the muscle's natural healing process. Their results indicated they indeed achieved that goal. Furthermore, George Christ a leading professor working with the team stated, "Within two months after implantation, the force generated by the repaired muscle is 70 percent that of native tissue, compared to 30 percent in animals that didn't receive repair." These scientists have just made a breakthrough which can change the lives of many injured and unfortunate people, from those who have been born with muscle deformations such as cleft lip to soldiers who have been wounded in battle.
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