From stem cells, researchers at the University of Wisconsin Madison have developed a three-dimensional model of vocal cords, including the mucosa and folds of human vocal cords. This is especially important, as these folds are primarily responsible for creating our voice and not introducing food to the respiratory system.
By exposing the vocal cords of the model to cigarette smoke, they have observed that inflammation occurs, just as tobacco affects the human larynx. Therefore, considering the difficulties that arise to take samples of vocal cords without harming the patient, scientists have stated that this model could serve to investigate how to cure the damage caused by tobacco, allergens and infections. Published in the journal Nature Communications.