Spongy material helps repair the spine (video)

Remember those colorful “grow capsules” that blossom into animal-shaped sponges in water? Using a similar idea, scientists have developed biodegradable polymer grafts that, when surgically placed in damaged vertebrae, should grow to be just the right size and shape to fix the spinal column. A brand-new video on the research is available at Lichun Lu, Ph.D. Mayo Clinic College of Medicine Xifeng Liu, Ph.D. Mayo Clinic College of Medicine