Printing body parts

[RonBoyd]

A machine that prints organs is coming to market.

Organovo’s 3D bio-printer works in a similar way to some rapid-prototyping machines used in industry to make parts and mechanically functioning models. These work like inkjet printers, but with a third dimension. Such printers deposit droplets of polymer which fuse together to form a structure. With each pass of the printing heads, the base on which the object is being made moves down a notch. In this way, little by little, the object takes shape.

The Organovo machine uses stem cells extracted from adult bone marrow and fat as the precursors. These cells can be coaxed into differentiating into many other types of cells by the application of appropriate growth factors. The cells are formed into droplets 100-500 microns in diameter and containing 10,000-30,000 cells each. The droplets retain their shape well and pass easily through the inkjet printing process.

http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=15543683

 

[Orchidflower]

That's just fantastic to me! Thanks for finding that article, RonBoyd!

 

[powerplay]

That's amazing, thanks for sharing!