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Where other people see bacon, biologist Luhan Yang sees lifesaving organs — hundreds and thousands of them, pig livers and pig kidneys and diabetes-curing pancreases, and possibly hearts and lungs, all growing inside droves of pampered swine. More established scientists than Yang have dreamed of creating animal organs that are suitable for transplantation into people waiting for a human donor. But until recently, experts said it would take decades to genetically alter pig organs to make them work safely in people. (Begley, 4/6)

Medical researchers have made a lot of progress developing artificial versions of organs like the heart, lungs and kidneys, but one thing has stumped them: artificial blood. Blood is especially hard to recreate because it does so many things, from carrying oxygen to helping the immune system to heating and cooling the body. Now, some Missouri researchers may have taken a big step forward in creating artificial blood. But the question remains: Will  science ever be able to replace the real thing? (Smith, 4/5)