Scientists turn spinach into human heart tissue

Popeye was right: spinach really is good for the muscles, and not just the ones in your biceps. In fact, scientists have discovered a way to use the leafy stuff, which has a vascular system not dissimilar to ours, to grow layers of working heart muscle, according to a paper published this month in the journal <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0142961217300856">Biomaterials</a>. The new technique, a collaboration between <a href="https://www.wpi.edu/news/wpi-team-grows-heart-tissue-spinach-leaves">Worcester Polytechnic Institute</a>, the <a href="http://www.wisc.edu/">University of Wisconsin-Madison</a>, and <a href="https://www.astate.edu/">Arkansas State University-Jonesboro</a>, marks a breakthrough in the field of human tissue regeneration, which has hitherto been stymied by scale. To wit, although current bioengineering methods can recreate cellular scaffolding on a large scope, fabricating branching networks of tiny blood vessels has proven far trickier.

Scientists have discovered a way to use spinach leaves to grow layers of working heart muscle.

Scientists have discovered a way to use spinach leaves to grow layers of working heart muscle.