| Clipped from: Scientists find human bone substitute in treated wood - SmartPlanet |
Scientists find human bone substitute in treated wood
Italian scientists have come the closest yet to replicating human bone with a process that uses natural wood.Scientists at the Institute of Science and Technology for Ceramics in Faenza, Italy found that when they cut rattan wood into pieces, heat it, add carbon and calcium, add more heat and add a phosphate solution, the rattan pieces transform after 10 days into material strong and durable enough to function as an inexpensive bone substitute.
| Clipped from: Journal of Materials Chemistry Articles |
From wood to bone: multi-step process to convert wood hierarchical structures into biomimetic hydroxyapatite scaffolds for bone tissue engineering
Anna Tampieri, Simone Sprio, Andrea Ruffini, Giancarlo Celotti, Isidoro Giorgio Lesci and Norberto Roveri
| Clipped from: BBC News - Turning wood into bones |
After about 10 days, the rattan wood has been transformed into the bone-like material.
The team is lead by Dr Anna Tampieri.
"It's proving very promising," she says. "This new bone material is strong, so it can take heavy loads that bodies will put on it.
"It is also durable, so, unlike existing bone substitutes, it won't need replacing."
Several types of wood were tested before they found rattan works best.
Sources:
- Scientists find human bone substitute in treated wood - SmartPlanet
- Journal of Materials Chemistry Articles
- BBC News - Turning wood into bones
- YouTube - Medical Breakthrough Turning Wood into Bones
