Muscle repair gets spooky help

Stem cells use empty tunnels, called ghost fibers, to rebuild damaged tissue in mice

Ghost fibers and stem cells

GHOSTS IN THE MACHINE  Muscle stem cells (white) crawl through ghost fibers (red) to heal damage in mouse muscle. Ghost fibers are empty tubes of connective tissue that bundle uninjured muscle cells into fibers.

M. Webster/Carnegie Institution for Science

SAN DIEGO — Friendly ghosts help muscles heal after injury.