FX.co ★ 4 medical innovations to expect in next 50 years

There is still a long way ahead for the scientists to achieve new medical breakthroughs. The latest technologies in medicine make it possible to save thousands of lives daily. In our photo gallery, read about 4 medical advances to look forward to in the next 50 years.

Saving premature babies

According to statistics, only 10% of infants in the US are born premature. By contrast in Russia, the number of preterm delivery and newborn mortality is much higher. Medical specialists around the world are working on the solution to tackle this problem and improve the sad statistics.

In 2017, scientists from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia created an artificial womb to support the development of early born lambs. As the research results showed, the fetus located inside the artificial uterus for 4 weeks displayed positive changes. In the future, these technologies can be applied to premature babies.

Reducing the shortage of donor organs

Currently, there is an acute shortage of donor organs all over the world which is also a reason for increased mortality. To solve this problem, scientists are trying to grow human organs within the pig’s embryos. These animals have organs similar to humans in size and shape. Besides, pig’s organs develop faster than the human ones. At the same time, it is very difficult for cells of one species to take root in another species organism.

In 2016, scientists managed to grow human stem cells inside a pig embryo. This achievement became a real breakthrough in medicine.

Repairing damaged organs with plants

Recently, scientists from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in Massachusetts made a breakthrough step in modern medicine. A team of specialists managed to grow blood vessels from spinach leaves that were able to transport water. After that, the plant cells were replaced with muscle cells from the human heart. In this way, it enabled the plant veins to pump water as they would do it in the real heart.

This discovery gives hope that in the nearest future it will be possible to treat damaged organs with plants, from spinach to broccoli, instead of transplanting them.

Regeneration

Regeneration of the living tissue is another ambitious goal of modern medicine. Every year, 185 thousand amputations are carried out in the United States. The field of prosthetics is rapidly developing now which allows people to use nano-technological prostheses that fully replace the lost limb.

However, scientists want to take a step further. In particular, they have paid special attention to animals, such as axolotl, with the ability to regenerate new parts of their body, including limbs, lungs, and even eyes. Scientists have already identified the genes responsible for regeneration ability in these animals. Perhaps, one day it will be possible to create a medicine that stimulates tissue growth in humans.