American researchers have discovered an 80th organ in the human body and arguably the largest. Their discovery could improve our understanding of the spread of certain diseases. Explanations.
To our knowledge, the human body was made up of 79 organs. But thanks to cutting-edge imaging technology called “confocal laser endomicroscopy “, researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (New York, United States) and the American universities of New York and Pennsylvania have highlighted a 80th organ.
The results of their study were published in the journal Scientific Reports March 27.
The largest organ in the human body
The researchers describe in this study, the anatomy and histology of a microscopic space filled with liquid, hitherto unrecognized: the interstitium. it’s about the interstitial structure, that is, located between the different tissues of the human body. If the researchers knew of its existence, it would seem that they had underestimated its extent and that it can now be considered as an organ in its own right.
These compartments contain lymph (a whitish biological fluid whose composition is similar to that of blood plasma) and are found in several regions of the human body, in particular under the skin, around the lungs, digestive and urinary tract, muscles and much of the circulatory system. Linked together by a strong network of proteins, these micro-compartments extend over a large part of the body. This makes the interstitium the largest organ in the human body.
A new organ has just been discovered in the human body after scientists had missed it for thousands of years! Tea #interstitium is not just a wall of collagen but a fluid-filled highwayhttps://t.co/7QKpLUz8oZ pic.twitter.com/OFcbLVppzi
– Shaalee Science (@ShaaleeScience) March 27, 2018
According to the researchers, the main function of this set of compartments is to protect the organs and tissues it covers. This type of anatomical structure could also be involved in the process of cancer metastasis, edema, fibrosis, and the mechanical functioning of many, if not all, tissues and organs. This discovery could therefore in the long term, facilitate the understanding of the spread of these diseases.
“This discovery has the potential to drive dramatic advances in medicine, including the possibility that direct sampling of interstitial fluid may become a powerful diagnostic tool,” explains The Independent Dr. Neil Theise, co-author of the study. To be officially considered a new organ, other researchers will still have to study the interstitium and form a consensus.
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