$20 million grant spuring tissue research at S.C. schools

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The National Science Foundation has awarded South Carolina universities with a $20 million grant for research aimed toward the engineering of human organs.

The Medical University of South Carolina is the lead institution involved in "The South Carolina Project" which will include ten universities in total.

Here's some details, from a press release:

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded South Carolina $20 million to establish a statewide alliance in the field of tissue biofabrication, which could lead to the production of human organs.

Lead scientist for the project, Roger Markwald, Ph.D., Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), said, “We are trying to build tissue and organs from the inside out, which is a different approach than anyone has taken. First, we want to create a three-dimensional vascular tree and then the organ. This will allow us to develop the applications to build many different types of organs.”

Check out the article The Post and Courier has on this exciting new opportunity for the state.

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