Researchers say they can grow large amounts of the transplantable tissue using cells from a small number of donors.

Researchers have figured out a way to grow a ready-made supply of blood vessels for transplant into patients undergoing heart surgery, reports a new study in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

The blood vessels, or “vascular grafts,” can be made ahead of time, so surgeons can grab them off the shelf when patients need them. Until now, no other vascular graft engineered from human tissue has tolerated simple storage.