New ‘bio-ink’ could be used to print new cartilage and bone implants

By Luke Dormehl June 27, 2016

researchers develop bio ink advancing 3d printing of living tissue bioprintingphoto2 — 3D Bioprinting Solutions

Of all the applications of 3D printing, the one which seems most astonishing is the possibility of one day being able to use the technology to print out vital biological organs.

But while we’re not at that point just yet, a team of researchers at the U.K.’s University of Bristol recently announced a significant new advance in the form of a brand new bio-ink, a printable liquid material made out of living cells. In time it is hoped that this new bio-ink may be used for the 3D printing of cartilage and bone implants for damaged body parts such as joints.

“What’s different about our work is that we’ve got a hybrid system in which the bio-ink is made up of adult stem cells and two polymers, one of them naturally occurring and other artificial,” Dr Adam Perriman, a senior research fellow at Bristol’s School of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, tells Digital Trends. “The artificial polymer controls the phase behavior of the ink, which comes out as a liquid and becomes a solid. The second natural polymer, extracted from seaweed, then provides the structural fidelity needed to sustain cell nutrients.”

If talk of “naturally-occurring polymers” and “phase behavior” is a bit much to absorb on a Monday, consider that one of the big challenges with bioprinting is allowing effective nutrient access for the stem cells used in the bio-ink — thereby creating a material which can be used to print a living structure. The hybrid bio-ink created by Perriman and his colleagues achieves this. Once the cell nutrients have been introduced, the synthetic polymer is expelled, leaving just the stem cells and natural polymer. The results have already been used to 3D print tissue structures such as a full-size tracheal cartilage ring.

“Bioprinting is an absolutely enormous area in terms of its current growth and the scale of its eventual goal,” Perriman says. “We’re definitely excited about our developments in the field — and the work we’re continuing to do.”

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Contributor

I'm a UK-based tech writer covering Cool Tech at Digital Trends. I've also written for Fast Company, Wired, the Guardian…

News

This startup says it will be 3D-printing entire houses within a year

mighty buildings 3d print house 5

Is 3D printing the future of housebuilding? It certainly will be if new startup Mighty Buildings, which launched from stealth mode this week, has its way. The company builds houses rapidly using a giant 3D printer and proprietary 3D printing material that, unlike concrete, hardens almost immediately thanks to a UV light curing process. This technique allows it to create houses with 95% fewer labor hours and significantly less waste than traditional construction techniques, which could be a game-changer in the construction field.

“The 3D printing, robotic post-processing, and the ability to automate steps like the pouring of insulation means that Mighty Buildings will be able to automate up to 80% of the construction process,” Sam Ruben, chief sustainability officer and co-founder of the company, told Digital Trends.

Emerging Tech

Inside the quest to 3D print a perfectly palatable steak

3D printed steak

As people grow more concerned about the impacts of the meat industry both on the environment and the animals involved, fake meats have experienced a boom in popularity. Products like Beyond Burger and Impossible Pork, for example, have captured the attention of vegans and vegetarians across the globe for their astonishingly meat-like tastes and textures. But while ground meat substitutes have made big strides in recent years, plant based versions of more choice cuts aren’t yet on the menu. Whole cuts of meat are the next milestone for the fake meat business, and companies around the world are sprinting to replicate the most iconic cut of all: Steak.

And they’re doing it through 3D printing.
Steak: Nature’s meaty masterpiece
Even the tastiest ground beef arrives in your kitchen as a mass of reddish flesh pressed into plastic or wax paper. Next to that, a good steak is a Michelangelo fresco, with layers of muscle fiber and fat.

Emerging Tech

3D printing lets hospitals make ventilator substitutes with common equipment

PEEP mask 1

Materialise 3D Prints Non-Invasive PEEP Masks to Alleviate Ventilator Shortage

Many hospitals around the world currently have an alarming shortage of mechanical ventilators, which they can use to treat COVID-19 patients. Responding to this crisis, Belgian 3D printing company Materialise has developed a 3D-printable device that transforms standard equipment available in the majority of hospitals into a mask that can help coronavirus patients get the oxygen they desperately need into their lungs. The company’s smart solution promises to create high positive pressure in patients’ lungs without the use of a traditional ventilator.