3D bioprinting

Although we're hearing more about 3D-printed replacement body parts, those parts need to be implanted via large incisions. That may not always be the case, however, thanks to a new "bio-ink" that could allow parts to be printed within the body.

Corals serve as a host to algae, which produces sugars that the corals consume. Now, scientists have 3D-printed coral that's even more algae-friendly than its natural equivalent – it could help limit coral bleaching, and provide a source of biofuel.

When someone suffers a loss of skeletal muscle, it can be very difficult getting new muscle to grow in its place. A new handheld device is designed to help, however, by directly depositing scaffolding within the patient's body.

It certainly would be great if instead of having to be harvested from a patient's own body, permanent skin grafts could be 3D-printed as needed. Well, we may be getting closer to that point, as scientists have now bioprinted living skin complete with blood vessels.

American researchers have 3D-bioprinted a miniature human heart, using human cardiac cells.

New technology promises to make the 3D-bioprinting process quicker and thus more practical than ever.

The distant scientific objective of 3D printed human organs has now grown a little bit closer, with researchers at Carnegie Mellon University reporting a breakthrough that enabled the printing of full-scale heart components that in some cases functioned similarly to the real thing.

Space travel is conducive to injuries. Now researchers from Dresden Technical University (TUD) have developed a 3D bioprinting method for use in space, creating new skin and bone tissue out of resources that might be available to astronauts.

Although it may be hard to believe that there is already an "established" method of doing something such as 3D-printing biological tissue, there does indeed seem to be one. It utilizes microscale scaffolds – which a newly-developed technique does away with the need for.

3D printing organs is going through some teething issues. Now researchers have found a surprisingly simple answer to the complex problem of printing detailed vascular networks, and shown it off with a dramatic model of a breathing lung that passes oxygen into surrounding blood vessels.

​Although pieces of heart tissue have previously been bioprinted, scientists have now succeeded in creating the world's first 3D-printed vascularized heart to be made from a patient's own biological materials. It's an accomplishment that could pave the way for custom-made replacement organs.

​We've been hearing a lot lately about how living cells can be combined with polymer gels, the mix then being 3D-printed to create biological tissue for use in transplants or experimentation. Such material could soon be getting even more like the real thing, thanks to new ultrasound tech.