Health Issue: Now, bone regrown

Now, bone regrown from fat, muscle cells London: In what is being claimed as a major break through, scientists have regrown bone and cartilage from fat cells and muscle tissue taken from a patient and then implanting them at the site of the injury.       An interantional team, led by Harvard Medical School, has achieved the feat of converting muscle and fat cells into cartilage and then bone in rodents by using a special form of gene therapy. Tests in the rodents showed that the implanted muscle and fat rapidly caused a bridge to form between broken bones within days. The bones were found to have returned to full strength within eight weeks of the injury.       Scientists say the new technology could dramatically speed up the time ti takes to heal knee injureis, the Daily Telegraph reported. "Further development of these methods should provide ways to heal bone and carilage at lower, cost, than is presently possible,"Chris Evants, who led the team, said.