Tofu bones

Vegetarian Times, March, 2005

A vegetarian alternative to the animal-derived substances used surgically to help mend broken bones may be on the market "within three to four years," the British scientist who is developing the soy-based material tells VT. Most products used to regenerate bones and other hard tissues are made of proteins extracted either from cows or from human bone banks.

The products also have drawbacks: They're expensive, can carry disease and offer no benefit to the living tissues around them. The new substance is not only made from a readily available, easily renewable vegetable source, according to Matteo Santin, PhD, of the University of Brighton's School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, it's also cheaper, does not transmit disease and stimulates the formation of new tissue.