For growing blood vessels from scratch. Laura Niklason started Humacyte after spending part of her time in medical school working in an intensive-care unit, where surgeons often had a hard time finding arm and leg veins suitable for replacing main arteries. Now Niklason, along with Julian Blum and Shannon Dahl, can grow human blood vessels rapidly, making “off-the-shelf” vein grafts. Human trials of the vessels begin this year. Next up are other tissues, such as ligaments and tendons.
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