Key points from article :
Human thymus has been built for the first time using human stem cells & a bioengineered scaffold.
Thymus is an organ in the chest where important immune cells mature.
Stem cells were taken from patients who had thymus removed during surgery.
When transplanted into mice they supported the development of mature & functional human immune cells.
".. Crucial step towards being able to grow thymus which could one day be used as transplants" - Sara Campinoti, author.
Thymus helps immune system to recognise self from non-self - poses a problem for organ transplants.
Transplanting a thymus regrown from cells taken from the thymus of the organ donor might prevent this.
Research by The Francis Crick Institute published in Nature Communications.
