Generating kidney tissue from pluripotent stem cells

With the isolation of human pluripotent stem cells came the possibility of generating specific cell types for regenerative medicine. This has required the development of protocols for directed differentiation into many distinct cell types. One of the more complicated tissue types to recreate is the kidney. Here we review recent progress towards the recreation of not only specific kidney cell types but complex kidney organoids, models of the developing human organ, in vitro. We will also discuss potential short and long term applications of these approaches.