Scientists Say: Transplant

Transplant, (verb, “TRANS-plant”)

Transplant means to move something from one place to another. For example, a gardener might transplant a small shrub from one side of their yard to another. A transplant can involve something as small as a cell or as large as a whole population.

In conservation biology, scientists may transplant a group of organisms from one place to another. Such a move might help a species thrive in a new habitat or move back to a place it had disappeared from.

Corals are a good — and hopeful — example. These animals live in colonies and build structures called reefs. But pressure from pollution, warming ocean water and other threats have killed corals around the world. To help, scientists have been transplanting young corals. These scientists hope the move will encourage new coral colonies to grow.

In medicine, doctors may transplant cells, tissues or organs. A person might need a transplant if one of their major organs, such as the heart or kidney, stops working effectively. People with some types of blood disorders may receive a stem cell transplant. This procedure replaces damaged or unhealthy blood cells with healthy ones.

A transplant could also involve moving a person’s own tissues from one part of their body to another. For example, a person with a severe burn may have damage to their skin. A kind of transplant called a skin graft can help them heal. In this case, surgeons move healthy skin tissue from one part of the person’s body to the injured part. That healthy skin covers the injury, allowing the burn to heal.

In a sentence

Transplanting disease-resistant individuals in the Sierra Nevada Mountains has helped the mountain yellow-legged frog return from the brink of extinction.

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