First commercial 3-D bio-printer makes human tissue and organs

Two engineering companies, Oganovo and Inventech, recently collaborated to design a printer that creates 3-D human organs and tissues. This printer can be used with adult cells of any type, and it can synthesize a wide variety of tissue shapes and sizes.

The printer works by first laying down either a hydrogel, a scaffold, or a support matrix based on a computer generated model of the desired organ or tissue. Then, the printer uses a laser calibration system to orient a capillary print head and deposit the cells in the target location. This process is accurate to the level of microns which is necessary to produce a functioning tissue.

This printer system is small enough to fit inside a bio-safety cabinet, and the two companies hope to distribute their printers to various international research centers within a few years.

I think that this type of 3-D printer is really remarkable considering how accurate the process would have to be. When I think of the size of the cells that are being placed on the scaffold, I am amazed by the printer's ability to perform with such high precision. It would be a really significant breakthrough if future generations of researchers could use this type of technology to build a replacement organ for a sick individual within a few days to replace, for example, a failing heart. Using this process would eliminate the need to wait for an organ donor and if the cells used in the printer came from the sick individual, then it would also avoid rejection of the implanted tissue.

The fact that this technology has become available to researchers on the market seems like a huge step forward in the field of producing artificial organs and is very promising for the future.

http://rdmag.com/New-To-Market/2009/12/New-to-Market-First-commercial-3-D-bio-printer-makes-human-tissue-and-organs/