Interstitium: New Human Organ Discovered!
This week scientists have discovered a new human organ! This new organ is known as the interstitium, it is found throughout the human body and is described as fluid filled compartments. The interstitium is found beneath the skin and lining organs throughout the body. Previously when observed this organ has been written off as dense connective tissue. These interconnected fluid compartments are thought to be used as ‘shock absorbers’ for the body; meaning upon impact the interstitium protects the tissues of body from damage.
(Jill Gregory)
This discovery was made by Dr David Carr-Locke and Dr Petros Benias at Mount Sinai Beth Israel Medical Center, when searching for signs of cancer in the bile ducts of a patient. Upon their discovery of the cavities they contacted Dr Neil Theise; as team they hypothesized that the traditional method of creating slides destroys the structure of the interstitium because one must drain the fluid. To circumvent this issue they have been freezing the interstitium in order to study its structure.
They discovered that the interstitium is connected to the lymphatic system and can be used as a transport system for molecules around the body. Researchers hypothesis that this could be a way that tumors can travel or metastasize around the body. This could aid cancer researcher by providing a new platform for preventive measures in the spread of cancer around the body. Although the interstitium was discovered inhuman it is likely found in other animal tissues, opening up an entire realm of research opportunities.
This discovery has made me question my view of anatomy. I thought we as a human race have understood the complexities of the body, and the brain was the last frontier. Now I am curious if there are other parts of the body, other organs, or cell types that have not yet been discovered. The knowledge of interstitium will aid the human race in creating better suited medicine and perhaps a more clear understanding of the spread of metastatic cancer.
Citations:
Josh Gabbatiss Science Correspondent. “Interstitium: New Organ Discovered in Human Body
after It Was Previously Missed by Scientists.” The Independent, Independent Digital News and Media, 27 Mar. 2018, www.independent.co.uk/news/health/new-organ-human-body-interstitium-cancer-skin-scientists-discovery-new-york-a8275851.html.
By: Brooke Sullivan
Wow, this is really fascinating. Like you said, it's easy to think that we already understand a good majority of the workings of the human body, but in reality, there's still so much we still don't know! Like are there any other organs that we don't know about? It's crazy to me that this organ has been right beneath our noses this whole time and we are only just discovering it. It makes sense, however, that traditional slicing of tissue to create slides prevents us from observing these fluid-filled compartments. I can't wait to see what new research lies ahead now that this discovery has pathed the way and opened up a whole new frontier!
ReplyDelete-Nicole Ayres (1)
I agree it is a very exciting discovery! I wonder what kind of screening methods we will develop to observe the interstitium and which diseases we know of that involve it.
Delete-Brooke Sullivan (3)
Very interesting, I first heard about the interstitium in a twitter highlight the other day. It's crazy how big of a discovery this is, considering it took us so long to make it. This really just shows us why the phrase "practicing medicine" is used.
ReplyDelete-Michael Magnant (1)
I agree! When I first saw the title "new organ discovered" I was highly skeptical, you would think after centuries of medical research humanity would have a pretty complete understanding of the inner workings of the human body.
Delete-Brooke Sullivan (3)
This is really awesome! It's great that in this day and age we are still making discoveries. This is what I love about medicine, you can never know everything; it is never boring. I am hopeful that this discovery can help us find new ways to defeat cancer. Is that fluid interstitial fluid?
ReplyDeletePosted by Sarah Kamukala
I agree it is amazing to think about how little we know! I believe you are right that is is the interstitial fluid.
Delete-Brooke Sullivan
This was certainly interesting to read about, I had seen this news around many different science websites and finally was able to read about it in this post. I too wonder how much more of the human body there is to discover. We really are a complex species and there are lots of things we have yet to know about our own brains.
ReplyDelete-Sunaina Sharma (3)