 WFUBMC |
Anthony Atala conducts research in his lab at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine. One of his projects involves bioengineered rabbit penises. |
When the late author John Updike wrote the novel “Rabbit Redux,” it’s a sure bet that he didn’t have rabbit penises in mind. And yet the story behind rabbit penises redux – or, to use a less Latinate phrase, rabbit penises brought back to life – is a tale worth retelling.
The research into restoring penile function in bunnies, conducted at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine in North Carolina and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in November, was the top vote-getter in this year’s unscientific Newsvine poll for the Weird Science Awards. The “Weirdies” recognize 10 of the strangest scientific stories published over the previous year.
Rebuilding rabbit penises may indeed sound strange, but there’s a serious point behind the research. (No smirking!) The procedure, which involves growing erectile tissue on a bioengineered scaffold of collagen, is aimed at helping humans once it’s perfected.
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