8 Scientific Breakthroughs That Will Change The World

4. Bioengineered Body Parts

One of the biggest problems with organ transplantation is the threat of rejection. When an organ from another organism is transplanted into a patient, their immune system may well start to attack it as it would with any other foreign body. This is a life-threatening condition and places severe limitations on the availability of "suitable" organ matches, meaning that people can linger on transplant waiting lists until they die. However, the ability to produce almost any body part in the lab - be that skin, bone or even a living, beating heart - made using the patient's own genetic material, could completely revolutionise how we live, work and even how we die. To be able to routinely replace body parts without the need for donors, waiting lists and anti-rejection drugs would not only change the way we treat the chronically ill, but could also completely alter the lives and abilities of an aging population. People would live longer, healthier lives, possibly remaining fit, active and healthy well into their hundreds. This would solve one of the major issues of an aging population - how to support it - as people would be able to work longer, remain independent and generally ease the burden of care that we currently face.