Yarn grown from human skin cells could be used to make implantable “human textiles” for tissue grafts or organ repair.

“We can sew pouches, create tubes, valves, and perforated membranes,” explains Nicholas L’Heureux, who led the work at the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research in Bordeaux. “With the yarn, any textile approach is feasible: knitting, braiding, weaving, even crocheting.”

Synthetic materials used for sutures and tissue graft scaffolds can often trigger an immune response, causing inflammation that …