The pituitary gland grew itself, after Japanese researchers coaxed embryonic stem cells to form the type of tissues that normally surround the gland. The accomplishment could be the first step toward replacement pituitary glands for people. Self-made glands growing in lab dishes may also help researchers learn how the organs develop inside the body.
The researchers used chemicals to coax mouse embryonic stem cells to form two types of brain tissue in a lab dish. Where those two tissues meet in the brain is where the pituitary forms, so the researchers manipulated conditions such that the tissues would form side-by-side. The researchers then gave the tissues a dose of Hedgehog, an important protein that directs development of many different tissues. A fold of tissue called Rathke’s pouch spontaneously formed between the two tissues and eventually grew into a pituitary gland, complete with five different types of hormone-producing cells normally found in a naturally formed gland.
And, the dish-grown gland actually works. It secretes a hormone, called adrenocorticotropic hormone, both in a lab dish and when transplanted near the kidney in mice, which is more practical than trying to put the gland in its normal spot at the base of the brain.
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