Swiss scientists have succeeded in cultivating lip cells in the laboratory, in a Petri dish, thus creating a 3D cellular model never before seen in the world.
Lip cells, cells like no other
In their study, published in the journal Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology (source 1), the researchers report having observed that the labial cells thus cultured in vitro continued to reproduce beyond what was previously thought. The team specifies having deactivated a gene linked to the life cycle of cells, and modified the length of telomeres (the ends of chromosomes, made up of DNA, and associated with longevity). Enough to allow cells to reproduce indefinitely. The first cells used, and which then reproduced, came from donations from two patients suffering from lip laceration and cleft lip respectively.
“Tests showed that the cells remained stable during their replication and that subsequent cells had the same characteristics as the starting cells. The cells showed no signs of cancer and responded to injuries and to infections in the same way as the body’s lip cells”, rejoice the scientists, in a press release (source 2).
“The lips are a very important element of our face”
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