Landmark papers in respiratory medicine bioartificial lungs based on de-and recellularisation approaches: A historical perspective

For patients with end-stage respiratory diseases, such as COPD, interstitial lung diseases and cystic fibrosis, lung transplantation remains the only treatable option. However, due to increasing demand and limited availability of donor lungs, risk of complications such as acute and chronic rejection, and adverse effects of immunosuppressive treatments, this is not an alternative for the majority of this patient group [1, 2]. To meet the rising clinical demand new strategies to increase the number of available lungs for transplantation are needed [2]. One such strategy involves creating a functional lung ex vivo using different de- and recellularisation approaches. In this article, we will provide an overview of three landmark studies on bioartificial lungs published during 2010 that set the base for the direction of this relatively young field.