Claim · 1953 · Cellular therapy (Frischzellentherapie)
Injection of fetal sheep cells from a specific organ restores the function and structure of the corresponding aging organ in the recipient through migration and integration of the donor cells.
The organ-specific migration claim is the central mechanistic assertion of the Niehans cellular-therapy protocol. It is inconsistent with the immunology of xenogeneic tissue injection and is not supported by any subsequent controlled investigation. Modern xenotransplantation literature treats the assertion as biologically incoherent. The claim has been refuted not by a single named disconfirmation study but by the cumulative weight of immunology and cell biology research since the 1950s.
Appears in
Sources
- Introduction to Cellular Therapy — Niehans, Paul. *Introduction to Cellular Therapy*. New York: Pageant Books, 1960.