The experimental powder made from a pig's bladder regrew the man's severed finger to full length in just four weeks, including a finger print and fingernail.
Lee Spievack of Cincinnati is estatic about the new 'Pixie Dust', why? Because he accidentally severed almost half an inch off of the top of one of his fingers. Instead of opting to having a skin graft he wanted to try the pig bladder 'Pixie Dust'
Fox News reports that the “pixie dust” is actually extra-cellular matrix, bursting with collagen and is made from a dried pig’s bladder and was originaly designed to regenerate damaged ligaments in horses.
The powder directs tissues to grow fresh instead of forming a scar.
Spievack said his finger even has a fingernail and fingerprint.
“The second time I put it (the dust) on, I could already see the growth,” Spievack said. “Each day it was up further. Finally, it closed up and was a finger. It took about four weeks before it was sealed.”
Dr. Stephen Badylack of the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh said.
“There are all sorts of signals in the body.” “We have signals that are good for forming scar tissue and others that are good for regenerating tissues.
"One way to think about these matrices is that we've taken out many of the stimuli for scar tissue formation and left those signals which were always there for constructive remodeling."
What an amazing story of the power of human invention, science and medicine. Mr. Spievack is very lucky to have his finger back, fingernail and all.
