Scientists from NYU Langone Health and NYU School of Medicine have discovered a previously unknown feature of human anatomy. This is called the the interstitium, and it is found in numerous places, including top layer of skin, and tissue layers lining the gut, lungs, blood vessels, and muscles. This discovery is a network of fluid-filled spaces in tissue that have not been seen before.
The ‘organ’ has implications for the function of all bodily organs as well as most tissues. Moreover, it appears linked to the causative mechanisms of most major diseases. According to Scientific American, before the discovery scientists thought the tissue layers of the human body were a dense wall of collagen (the structural protein); instead, the new finding suggests that the tissue is like an open, fluid-filled highway.
The researchers are stating, according to Business Insider, that the interstitium is the largest organ in the human body. The interstitium is being defined as an ‘organ’ since it has a unified structure and function.
The discovery came about through advanced imaging techniques and digital capture. The scientists used a powerful microscope with a technique called confocal laser endomicroscopy, which is a new diagnostic technique that allows microscopic examination of the digestive mucosa during ongoing endoscopy. Through the method the scientists were able to examine and analyze healthy living tissue samples from human bile ducts. Once the scientists recognized this new space through the analysis of the images of bile ducts, they rapidly recognized the interstitium throughout the body, wherever tissues moved or were compressed by force.
There is much to discover and to ponder over in relation to the new discovery. According to lead researcher Dr. Neil Theise: “This finding has potential to drive dramatic advances in medicine, including the possibility that the direct sampling of interstitial fluid may become a powerful diagnostic tool.”
The finding has been reported to the journal Scientific Reports. The research paper is titled “Structure and Distribution of an Unrecognized Interstitium in Human Tissues.”
