New Army Technology Regrows Limbs

New Army Technology Regrows Limbs

edition.cnn.com

Regrowing a fingertip cut off in an accident sounds like something from a futuristic movie. But with innovative technology developed by the U.S. Army, such regrowth is possible today.

(visit the link for the full news article)

Ok so we have seen research and development in this area before but now with practical application just around the corner it shows that the technology is ready.

Now all we need is for the everyday person to have access to the technology. Also I would like to know if this technology is going to be available to civilian casualties or will it be strictly for the Military? A great technology nonetheless, what other toys have they got?

edition.cnn.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

somebody

tell

John Wayne Bobbit

It'll be a while before it hits the commercial market, like microwaves, GPS, etc.

Of course, the Information Age might decrease the waiting period.

if they got tech that can do that, theres no telling what else they have

The truth is, if you have an infant, and he/she gets a fingertip mangled, rather than try to "reconfigure" it, it is better to cut if off just above the first joint. A brand new, perfect fingertip will regrow.

Somewhere around age 1-2 years of age, this ability drops off.

In biophysics, the ability to stimulate cellular dedifferentiation (growing whatever cells are needed, in the right place, and in the right amount) can be accomplished using the same EM activity the body uses. Scalar EM excitation.

Our little group are not licensed medical practitioners, but we have accomplished some interesting physical activities by this EM stimulation.

Since we can only use this on ourselves, or let others use it on themselves legally, we've been somewhat limited in our experiments.

Reversed one case of lung cancer.

Reversed one case of leukemia.

Reversed on case of macular degeneration.

Eliminated a bad smoker's hack.

A friends elderly mother crushed and shattered her elbow, surgeon sewed bones back in relative order to enable swelling to go down so they could do an elbow replacement.

Gave this to her, pain immediately was gone, and elbow was completely healed and in perfect condition two weeks later. Doctors were stunned, but she was under an oath not to tell how this happened.

We note that we don't get sick. Nothing. Never any flu, cold, sore throats, nothing.

Granddaughter with fever of 101.4, terribly sick, bouncing around with normal temperature after three hours from exposure.

Yes, there is a way to stimulate cellular dedifferentiation, and do so without biology or chemistry. Simple biophysics.

Explain a bit more then? will this cure chicken pox, coz I have it and the blisters are so go damn painfull!!!!

Originally posted by dooper
The truth is, if you have an infant, and he/she gets a fingertip mangled, rather than try to "reconfigure" it, it is better to cut if off just above the first joint. A brand new, perfect fingertip will regrow.

Somewhere around age 1-2 years of age, this ability drops off.

In biophysics, the ability to stimulate cellular dedifferentiation (growing whatever cells are needed, in the right place, and in the right amount) can be accomplished using the same EM activity the body uses. Scalar EM excitation.

Our little group are not licensed medical practitioners, but we have accomplished some interesting physical activities by this EM stimulation.

Since we can only use this on ourselves, or let others use it on themselves legally, we've been somewhat limited in our experiments.

Reversed one case of lung cancer.

Reversed one case of leukemia.

Reversed on case of macular degeneration.

Eliminated a bad smoker's hack.

A friends elderly mother crushed and shattered her elbow, surgeon sewed bones back in relative order to enable swelling to go down so they could do an elbow replacement.

Gave this to her, pain immediately was gone, and elbow was completely healed and in perfect condition two weeks later. Doctors were stunned, but she was under an oath not to tell how this happened.

We note that we don't get sick. Nothing. Never any flu, cold, sore throats, nothing.

Granddaughter with fever of 101.4, terribly sick, bouncing around with normal temperature after three hours from exposure.

Yes, there is a way to stimulate cellular dedifferentiation, and do so without biology or chemistry. Simple biophysics.

Hey you have like a website or anything documenting your work, it sounds iteresting.

Let's see, I know I have that link somewhere around here.

Here we go:
The Man Who Grew A Finger

Here's what interested the Army in developing it.

reply to post by bharata


This is not terribly exciting. Starfish do this without technology. Try growing a new leg.

We already know this is possible with stem cells:
www.google.com...

The article actually appears to be totally avoiding the term "stem cells", almost like the Army is trying to hide their own stem cell research.

"Magic dust" lol.

[edit on 22-12-2008 by ElevenEleven]

reply to post by ElevenEleven



any bets on where the military received the information necessary to start working on this topic all those years ago?

reply to post by spec_ops_wannabe


It sure does sound like it's the same "technology" for growing limbs back!

Here's a little quote from the article in that thread.

The man who grew back his finger tip

How? Well that's the truly remarkable part. It wasn't a transplant. Mr Spievak re-grew his finger tip. He used a powder - or pixie dust as he sometimes refers to it while telling his story.

Mr Speivak's brother Alan - who was working in the field of regenerative medicine - sent him the powder.

For ten days Mr Spievak put a little on his finger.

"The second time I put it on I already could see growth. Each day it was up further. Finally it closed up and was a finger.

"It took about four weeks before it was sealed."

And here's a quote from the OP's article! They are talking about the guy who cut his fingertip off in the above article in the OP's article also!

New Army technology could save soldiers' lives

The Army's regenerative medicine study combined properties from the intestinal lining and the urinary bladder to create a regenerative substance called Extracellular Matrix.

The cream-colored crystallized powder, called "magic dust," boosts the body's natural tendency to repair itself, said U.S. Army Biological Scientist Sgt. Glen Rossman. When the matrix is applied to a missing digit or limb, "the body thinks it's back in the womb," Rossman said.

One civilian participated in the regenerative-medicine study after cutting off the tip of his finger in a model plane's propeller. Researchers continually applied the matrix to the wound, and after four weeks, the body grew skin and tissue to replenish the damaged area.

Sounds like the guy who grew that fingertip back WAS just the push that was needed for this technology to get the attention it needed!

[edit on 12/22/2008 by Keyhole]

Here's a news release from the U.S. Department of Defense abou the creation of the Armed Forces Institute of Regenerative Medicine (AFIRM).

New Armed Forces Institute of Regenerative Medicine to Lead Way in Caring for Wounded

The Department of Defense announced the creation of the new, federally-funded institution, the Armed Forces Institute of Regenerative Medicine (AFIRM) during a briefing today at the Pentagon.
******SKIP******
“Therapies developed by the AFIRM project will greatly benefit wounded warriors, as well as the civilian population with, burns or severe trauma due to illness or injury,” said Dr. S. Ward Casscells, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs.

The AFIRM team is committed to developing clinical therapies over the next five years focusing on the following five areas:

· Burn repair
· Wound healing without scarring
· Craniofacial reconstruction
· Limb reconstruction, regeneration or transplantation
· Compartment syndrome, a condition related to inflammation after surgery or injury that can lead to increased pressure, impaired blood flow, nerve damage and muscle death

“Following in the great military medical tradition of innovation, collaboration and progressive research, AFIRM will unify and apply all the recent breakthroughs in regenerative medicine while leading the charge to new ones,” said Casscells.
******SKIP******
In addition to developing clinical treatments, the AFIRM will serve as a training facility to develop experts in treating trauma with regenerative medicine and will serve as a resource to help the military develop tissues as needs are identified.

Let's just hope this program stays funded in these trying economic times and that they really can perfect this technology/process!

reply to post by dooper


Yes I would like to know more. Any information would be welcome.

Okay, IF this is real and true, what other applications might it have?

Replace failing kidneys?

Liver?

New heart and lungs?

Now I'll play Devil's Advocate for a moment:

Has anyone considered, with the vast overpopulation of our planet and the greed and evil that lurks in the hearts of men, that this technology might eventually be used to cause more harm than good?

I know one reason many are against cloning is because of the possibility of "Donor Clones" being created to provide replacement parts for the Elite (because let's face it, those of us who actually work for a living will NEVER have access to this kind of stuff). I have to admit it's a concern I've had regarding cloning as well.

Now, we have this.

I'm all for fixing up our soldiers and making people "whole" again. I guess it worries me, though, that as medical science advances we're getting dangerously close to physical immortality--and I'm not sure we, as a species, are prepared for the social and political repercussions of that.

I certainly think this is "too big" to entrust to any one nation or corporation, and I think there needs to be some pretty strong controls over this technology. I mean, this is real Nazi Ubermensch-type stuff. For all the possibility that exists for healing, I can also see the possibility for all kinds of horrors.

I hope to the Flying Spaghetti Monster that I'm wrong.

Found some more interesting info on this.

Believe it or not, this powder has already been approved by the FDA!

Researchers Work Toward Regenerating Lost Extremities

Doctors from the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research are trying a regenerative medicine powder that’s already approved by the Food and Drug Administration in hopes of stimulating tissue growth in soldiers with missing extremities.

“The powder is FDA approved and is already being used for hernia repairs and other applications,” said Dr. Steven Wolf, chief and task area manager of clinical trials at ISR. “But it has never been used for this reason in people.”
******SKIP******
The “pixie dust” is far from magic. It is derived from pig bladder. To create what Wolf refers to as extracellular matrix, scientists take a mix of protein and connective tissue, “spin” it to remove the cells, and then mash the remaining material into a powder.

“When put onto open wound, it seems the body starts to regrow normal tissue,” Wolf said.

The theory is that when the powder is applied, circulating stem cells see the matrix, stop and differentiate into whatever they are near, Wolf said. For instance, if by a bone, then the cells become bone; if by a blood vessel, then they become a blood vessel; or if by a nerve, they become a nerve.

In other words, the regenerative medicine powder acts as a stop sign for stem cells, which are undifferentiated cells everyone has circulating throughout their blood stream.

Wolf likens the concept to regrowth of a severed tail in a salamander.

“You pull a tail off a salamander, and it regrows,” Wolf said. “The end of the tail forms what is called a blastema, and that blastema elongates. We think that’s what happens when we put this powder on.

“This process of growing your fingers has happened to you before, in your mother’s womb,” Wolf said. “The code is there, the DNA is there. What we’re trying to do is trick your body into doing that again.”

Armed Forces Make Progress in Regenerative Medicine

Vandre said doctors often are forced to remove limbs because they know that if they don’t, the injured servicemember would always be in excruciating pain, and unable to function normally. The Armed Forces Institute of Regenerative Medicine is working to find ways to improve chances of recovery and regeneration that would encourage doctors to keep damaged limbs in place.

“The idea is to use stem cells to put people back together and re-grow the cells that are damaged,” Vandre said. The scientists use adult stem cells from the actual patients in their research to minimize the likelihood of rejection.
******SKIP******
“If it doesn’t work, there is no downside,” Wolf said. “That’s why we’re testing it on fingers vs. legs. If we apply it to a leg amputee, the downside is the soldier won’t be able to walk for several months, and it may not work.”

Medicine's Cutting Edge: Re-Growing Organs

Advances That Go Beyond Theory

In his lab at Wake Forest University, a lab he calls a medical factory, Dr. Anthony Atala is growing body parts.

Atala and his team have built, from the cell level up, 18 different types of tissue so far, including muscle tissue, whole organs and the pulsing heart valve of a sheep.

"And is it growing?" Andrews asked.

"Absolutely," Atala said, showing him, "All this white material is new tissue."

"When people ask me 'what do you do,' we grow tissues and organs," he said. "We are making body parts that we can implant right back into patients."

Seems like this is already FDA approved and is just being perfected now!

[edit on 12/22/2008 by Keyhole]

Great info!! Thanks everyone for your contribution. I think the human race needs to grow up and those in charge need to grow up now!

Overpopulation is not the biggest threat to the world in my opinion. Greed and money, fighting stupid wars and pure selfishness are the main cause as well as addiction to oil and suppressing clean energy technology and what this post is about new medical technology ( I mean technology in the broader sense of the word).

The good thing is that this may make it to the mainstream.

I for one dont want to die unnecessarily because the world is overpopulated, I dont want children to die because the world is over populated.

I do think we will be ok, I have faith in us.

If it is made available for public use it will cost $500,000 dollars per application. Bank on it. It wont matter that the powder costs pennies to make, and is not really 'new.'

Imagine all the $ invested in prosthesis industries being 'forgotten?' Not gonna happen. They WILL make this a cash cow, otherwise the FDA wouldn't approve it.

I'm interested in that stuff. Now, itsnt there more infos about it? Where to find it? Any ways to buy it on internet? Any side effect? Any infos about the regeneration process by using extra cellular matrix? i would gladly test it on myself, if there is no bad/side effects, of course. Do you think we could make the same "powder" with a peace of human liver? Why do we use pig bladder?