Recently I came across a few articles about 3D printing of
organs and tissues.
Sample articles:
The greatest success so far has been achieved by scientists
from Tel Aviv University. They were the first to print an exact replica of the
heart with blood vessels and chambers. The heart was printed from human cells
and specific biological materials (substances consisting of sugars and
proteins). The printed heart has the size of a rabbit's heart. His cells may
shrink, but they must learn to pump so that they can cooperate.
On the other hand, researchers from the University of
Nagasaki and Saga are studying the method of printing 3D structures without
scaffolding to create tissues for transplantation. Methods using scaffolds are
widely known in medicine, but problems such as immunogenicity, scaffold
degradation, and immune response may occur. Treatments based on scaffolding are
also limited by materials that can be used to create scaffoldings. Thanks to
the MCS (multicellular spheroids) method, in which the cells have the
possibility of joining one another individually, the scientists were able to
create the structures of esophageal tissue and then transplant them in rats.
After surgery, none of the rats showed any complications.
Biomaterials used in 3D printing of organs should have the
same biochemical, mechanical and topographic properties as the patient's own
tissues. By using biomaterials from patients, scientists eliminate the risk of
implant rejection. This is extremely important because about 50% of transplants
are rejected within 10-12 years of transplantation.
3D printing in biomedicine creates great opportunities.
Thanks to it, the waiting time for transplant can be shortened many times and
the percentage of transplants rejected by the organism may be lowered.
1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D
printing method?
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters
will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to
printed organs?
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing
of organs or be available faster?
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the
ability to implant 3D printed organs?
Hi Monika,
ReplyDeletethanks for interesting article.
For now, the scientists try to obtain with this method following organs: kidney, liver, bones, cornea. Using bioprinting methods, the researchers achieved several successes. They were even able to turn stem cells taken from human donors into 3D bone grafts.
However, it is important to note, though, that this is so far only a proof of concept.
Definitely, such technology seems to be the future of implants, because the scientists are very close to many goals in this respect. For example, 3D printed kidney is one of the most difficult, but the scientists use ‘inks’ consisting of kidney cells and surrounding material. Thanks to this novel ink, it was possible to recreate part of the nephron, the functional unit of the kidney. The nephron is responsible for filtering the blood and reabsorbing all of the useful components and excreting out the rest. With this achievement, the field of 3D printed organs for transplant is a lot closer now to creating a functional kidney. Another example: 3D printed human liver tissue patches has been also presented as the solution to be developed in the future. Also, for the first time, the scientists have been able to 3D print a human cornea. By combining stem cells with alginate and collagen, they’ve created a unique bioink that can be extruded in circles to form the shape of the cornea in less than 10 minutes.
I have no idea, what kind of technology can replace this one, because it seems to be genial solution of no too high potential costs (when becomes more popular, of course). 3D bioprinting uses a typical layer-by-layer 3D printing method, depositing bioinks or biomaterials, to create 3D tissues or structures used for medicine or tissue engineering.
Transplants for humans require a lot more work to be done to ensure safety and efficacy. This is the most important disadvantage of this solution for now. The advantage is potentially law cost of production.
The most important advantage is providing solution to the real human needs. This technology is being applied to regenerative medicine to address the need for tissues and 3D printed organs for transplant. There are many kinds of artificial implants of common used in medicine. This is one of the way to construct them.
Br, marta
Thank you for your answer. I did not know that the work on the implementation of the artificial kidney is already at such an advanced stage. The ability to print organs from biomaterials specially designed for this method gives an amazing opportunity in the field of tissue regeneration. In addition, the organs can be printed specifically for the patient's needs.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteColloquially to get as much and as fast as possible. Hearing from a cardiologist, I qualify the Lord for a transplant ... the heart will be in about two years, goes to break down. A lot of people do not have that much time ...! I know something about this.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
I would like it, really! Only it will turn out soon that it's too expensive. That NFZ doesn't cover the cost of such treatment, that the law was badly written, but I really would like it!
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I don't have a clue. Seriously. This technology is already cosmic, and what will happen in a while? Hmm ... it's hard to say.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
No, the idea is brilliant in itself. You need to develop this technology. Give people a chance. Develop her and cherish her. Take care of her. Care!
Thank you for your answer. I also think that this technology should be developed so that everyone can have access to it. Public medical care should also ensure that in the future such treatments are refunded, and access to printed organs or tissues was accesible to everyone.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteIn the future, it will be possible to print human hearts or kidneys. We are already able to print elements of skin or other tissues. The biggest problem in the research on this project was that biodegraders have not been able to produce functional tissue of the right size and strength. They were also unable to produce precise structures, such as the bloodstream, because they did not have the right resolution.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
This technology is still at an early stage of testing, but scientists predict that the latest technology will print the arteries and veins within 5 years. Mass "printing" of complex organs such as the heart or liver is possible within 20 consecutive years. I hope that such a 3D printer will become a standard in hospitals, but it should be remembered that in addition to the devices themselves, we need trained transplant surgeons who will be able to implant this organ. 3D printing technology has shown great potential for the future of medicine. Since its introduction, it has been used in various fields, such as anatomical modeling, personalisation of medical devices and implants, assistance with precise medical interventions and the latest developments, 3D bio-printing, etc.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster
A little less specific information in this article for the title "3D printer will create a real human tissue from living cells". What will be the building blocks of these living organs? Probably not the tissue mentioned by the author, but the living cells. What structures are they going to reconstruct? How do they want to ensure stability of cellular connections? How will they ensure supply for living cells? More questions than answers. But I think it's a good way of thinking.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
There are several drawbacks of the 3-fold printing technology: the starting materials must be dissolved into liquid at low viscosity; heat, ultrasound and mechanical stresses (especially shear forces) generated during the biodegradation process have a negative effect on cell viability. There is a very limited amount of biomaterials that we can use to print cells because of nozzles clogging, so far only small numbers of cells can be printed; and a finite print height. This last problem was solved by the Russians and they want to print in the space.
Thank you for your answer. I also hope that this technology will appear in most hospitals around the world in a dozen or so years. You are right in addition to the equipment we also need talented surgeons who will be able to carry out transplants. Indeed, one still needs a lot of time to fully master the nuances of printing from living cells.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteThank you for your interesting articles. I think that in the future we will be able to print all the organs of the human body, but printing alone is not enough. The problem may be to transfer all the existing processes so that such a copy can work like the original.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
I think it's real. I bet, however, that at the beginning there will not be a widespread printing of whole organs, but just biological scaffolding which will help in the operations currently in use. Thanks to this we will be able to prevent the immune system from responding in many situations.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I have not heard of any technology that could compete in this matter with 3D printing technology.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
I do not see any drawbacks in such a solution. If, without harming the patient, we can use his or her cells to restore fully functional organs, this will open up a whole new chapter in human history.
Thank you for your answer. I also wonder how scientists will solve the problem so that printed organs function like real organs. As you can see, the processes taking place in the cells themselves and nerve connections between them play a big role.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteAs far as I’m concerned, bones and skin are printed using this technology. I have not heard about other organs. Based on the presented achievements I suppose that soon everything will be printed in this way.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
Certainly not, and above all, not in Poland. Polish hospitals simply cannot afford such solutions. The situation of the Ministry of Health is tragic. In the case of the introduction of 3D printers, you will probably have to wait many years in the queue to receive a printed organ.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I don’t know. 3D printing is just beginning to be implemented and we are already thinking about the technology that will replace it? In my opinion it is definitely too early for such predictions.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
I see few disadvantages. First of all, ethical problem: business on human organs (although printed). Cyborgs will also start to appear - people with many "non-own" organs. The question arises to when you are a human and since when you are a robot…? Nevertheless, the enormity of pros of this technology outweighs any of its cons.
Thank you for your answer. Unfortunately, in our country the situation with health care is what it is. It may eventually change and patients will not have to wait two years for surgery because there are neither doctors nor equipment. Printing organs could speed up the waiting time for organs, but not necessarily for transplant surgery. May it finally change. As for ethical problems, it can happen that rich people will be able to print and transplant every possible organ, as with a billionaire who has had 7 heart transplants.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteAs far as I know, using this technology one can print bones and skin. Basing on the article presented and the speed of technology development, I suppose that in the nearest future everything will be printed using 3D method.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
Maybe in the richest countries, such as Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, but definitely not here. Polish hospitals aren't able to afford the majority of their equipment. But for Wielka Orkiestra Świątecznej Pomocy, they wouldn't have all the appliance and machines they have, so unless the foundation sponsors the printers, they won't be present in our hospitals.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
The idea is great, so I don't see any reason why it could be potentially be replaced by some other technological novelty.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
No, not really.
Thank you for your answer. I hope that the situation in the Polish medical care will change and everyone will have access to modern technical equipment, and transplantation in Poland will be at a high level, and this technology will be refunded at least partially.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteI belive almost all can be obtained, maybe without brain as this strucure seems to be to complicated to recreate is really 1-1 as even minor changes can made a collapse for our consciousness and who we are.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
I hope so, but usually medical tests and acceptation procedures take a lot of time, so evein if within this horizon we will have technology we may still need to wait for use it in every hospital.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I always dreams about some nanorobots in our blood that can repair everything, so we dont need transplantations because the nanorobots will be able to repair our orginal organs on erly stage.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
Ability to print broken organs and some AI procedures of transplantation can in short term replace medical stuff which can be really important in places far away from cities like Arctic or even in our future Mars colony.
Thank you for your answer. Printing the brain seems an unrealistic idea at all considering its complex structure and possibilities. To date, even the brain can not be transplanted and nobody even thinks about it too much. The idea with Nanobots in our body sounds great and I would be happy to use it in the future myself.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteOrgans that can be obtained by this method are: kidneys, bones, livers. I wonder if there will be a possibility to print orgnas like heart, which is more complicated.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
I think that it is possible. Maybe not all kinds of organs but such as ones seems quite resonable to be printed.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I have no idea. I think that stil transplantation is better and faster but not alway aailable.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
I think that some patients can have a problem of rejecting such organs by their body. It is not a natural material for humans. We don't know how body will behve years aftrer such transplantaion.
Thank you for your answer. The pool of organs or tissues that can be printed remains limited, but it may change in a few years. Probably some organs will never be printed, for example, the brain or spinal cord.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteI heard that researchers can produce the structure of muscles, bones and ear tissue. I think in the future we can produce any organs that we need. I found this article
https://technologie.onet.pl/nauka-i-technika/zywe-organy-z-drukarki-3d/5kmf4dr
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
Maybe it will happen. The researchers still working to improve the process of production and attempt to produce other organs. The production of heart is a bigg success. The availbilty in hospitals in the future depends on costs and lifetime of printer and it speed.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
Maybe electrospinning. I found some articles about methods to produce organs:
https://www.livescience.com/46971-techniques-creating-organs-lab.html
https://futurism.com/synthetic-organs-were-one-step-closer-to-having-bioartificial-kidneys
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
The big advanteges is that we don't need to find a person that organs are compatible with ours eg heart from a dead person who has decided when she lived to share organs with others who need them to live. The organs can be produced from our biomaterials. The disadvanteges could be the lifetime of this organs and its realiability.
Thank you for your answer. Electrospinning seems to be a very interesting method of creating organs. Thank you for this information! You are right the vitality and reliability of organs produced from biomaterials may not be the same as real organs and in the worst case the organ will have to be transplanted few times.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteProbably all organs can be printed in this method. However, we must refine the methods of their production and expand our knowledge in this field.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
I think that it probably will not be possible on a massive scale, because pharmaceutical companies will try to sell this technology very expensive. For this we do not know the very far-reaching results of using such organs and their impact on health. The evaluation of such a method in medical processes takes at least about 40 years.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
At the moment the replacement is the organ clogging, but it is very time-consuming and expensive, it can not be used on a large scale. It's hard for me to find an example that will be better than printing.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
Our ignorance about potential long-term effects and how to correct any possible consequences. And the fact that it is an experimental technology, which we do not understand until the end, so every person submitting to such a procedure really surrenders to the experiment at his own risk.
Thank you for your answer. This technology is still a long way to make it completely safe, reliable and affordable for patients. I am sorry that in our world money is more important than human life and pharmaceutical companies always have the last word. If you can make money on the price of cancer drugs or vaccines, corporations will always impose huge margins.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteI heard about printing skin, but it's not organ...
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
It's wonderfull vision but I think that just vision. It's like with "surgeon da Vinci". It already exists and the demand is large but the cost is horrible! So if this technology will be possible in the future the next step is just to make it cheaper...
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I can't imagine and don't undestand the point of this question. 3D is (I think) the newest way...so how we could say about replace it? Meybe I don't know about something?
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
Adventages is of course possibility for many patiens for normal lives without waiting for someone death...disadventage that it will be only for the richest people-any insurance probably don't pay for that way of treatment.
Thank you for your answer. In addition to availability, we should always look at the prices of new technologies. This technology seems to be very promising, but the costs of acquiring stem cell biomaterials and subsequent organ growth in the right conditions may be too high to think about implementing this technology in the wider circle.
DeleteHello Monika,
ReplyDeletethanks for an interesting subject.
1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by the 3D printing method?
From our field: liver! Example from Poland: http://www.cm-uj.krakow.pl/index.php/collegium/aktualnosc/1856
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
I hope it would be true! However, I'd rather say that would be in the next 30 years.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
Maybe live organ cultivation, that could simply grown up like a living tissue?
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
Like in SF, if organs became available to replace, people could take less care of their health. But that is a pessimistic version, to be honest, I think that it is a very emerging idea that needs to be developed as soon as possible.
Thank you for your answer and an interesting article. The idea of breeding organs seems interesting, but I think that the conditions in which organs would have to be kept is very difficult to achieve. Although technology is already at an unimaginable level, so who knows.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteIf technology will allow probably all organs
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
Bioprinting is accelerating at a massive rate. But although it is very exciting times for the field, we need to be careful to offset expectations against reality.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I am ot aware of any.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
The advantages of extrusion-based 3D printing, according to the researchers, are the low costs of the entry-level printers, the variety of raw materials available and the ease of customization. The disadvantages include the low level of precision and the long build time
1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteApart from mentioned above, I think I've heard of earlobe being printed, and also pancreas (not fully-functional though). I'd also take a bet that printing of cornea was attempted. In general, organs or parts of that are simple in biological structure and possibly complex in geometry would qualify.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
We can't provide full access to current therapies, that don't require to start new "process" for each individual patient. I think bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, but access will be guarded by some wired rules, while it'll be possible to jump the queue by money.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
In some cases, growing cells on substrate that is not bio-specific might work as well, while being probably a lot cheaper. I think bones can be regenerated this way already. And, by total accident, I've noticed the 2005 movie "Island" is available on one of bigger streaming platforms, and hope theirs "technology" won't be ever used.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
Main advantage is we need less donors. Other is possibility of perfect tissue match. Disadvantage is low output volume, which translates to high cost.
Thank you for your answer. Organs are certainly complicated in their construction, not only because of their shape. It seems to me that the main problem in creating a fully functional organ is the connection of cells with nerves and lymphatic and blood vessels.
DeleteHi Monika,
ReplyDeleteThank you for interesting article. This are my answers:
1.What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
Based on the assurance from bio 3D printing company, in a future they will be capable to print vascular system with a hart, lung and trachea, cartilage, liver, pancreas, esophagus and skin.
2.In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
I see a lot of advantages stands for using 3D printing on a mas scale, ones of this that should be mentioned are compatibility and availability.
From what was presented in articles there are already many incredible achievements in this area till now, and expertise in this field is grooving rapidly. So, I think that in a future 3D printed organ will be in general use.
3.What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I didn't find the answer for your question in the article, and my top 20 hits on google stand only about 3D printed organs, so I don't have anything else in mind that could compete with this technology right now.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
I think is a great use of technological development, that helps saving people, and can be treated like a cure for some diseases.
Thank you for your answer. I also hope that this technology will be efficiently developed and available in the future on a massive scale.
Delete1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteObserving the level of inventions connected with the newest technology, involving 3D printing, I have a big hopes that in the not so far future we will be able to print all of the important organs of human body, for example livers, hearts, kidneys, bones… That’s the ones that firstly came to my mind because these are are most common for transplantation.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
Next 10 or 20 years is a long time and I cannot say anything for sure, but as far as I’m concerned this field of science is improving very fast, so I don’t think it is impossible. In my opinion 3D bioprinters will be present in the hospitals and most patients will have access to it mostly in developed countries, but also I think that at the beginning it would be extremely expensive – not just printing, but transplanting it to the human body in a way where it would work properly with other organs and tissues. So I think that the access to it at first would be rather limitated basing on the money.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I am not an expert on it but in my opinion maybe Xenogeneic transplantation and growing human organs in pig’s body will be available faster. Below I will give You a link to the article describing this technology:
https://journals.lww.com/co-transplantation/Abstract/2019/02000/Xenogeneic_transplantation_and_tolerance_in_the.4.aspx
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
Advantages are obvious, as it – simply putting – may help save many poeple’s lives and be major factor of increasing the lenght of human life. As for disadvantages, I can see only one – such technology is not yet available and can’t be at this time wildly use, and unfortunately we can’t predict when we would be able to use it in our favour.
1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion all of organs will be printed in 3D technology in the future. If the scientists are able to print all the organs, it may mean that the human will be able to live hundreds of years! Nowadays, the scientists are able to print human bones but I hope that they will be able to print other organs like lungs, eyes, liver, heart and others.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
I hope so. 20 years for scientists – it is a lot of time so I keep crossed my thumbs that 3D printers will be present in most hospitals. Nowadays, the medicine and 3D printing are fast developing disciplines so there are hope that the scientists will improve and commercialize the inventions. When I think what was and how the Poland looked like 20 years ago and what is and how the Poland looks like today, I can clearly see, that many things have changed.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I have no idea. The 3D technology seems to be the best solution for me nowadays. There are series of articles concerning printing 3D organs so it is very promising in this issue. I think it is easier to improve technology instead of inventing something in the beginning.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
The advantages may be the low cost of 3D printer, the variety of materials and the cost of material which can be applied in 3d process printing. I think that the disadvantage is that the printed organs could not be done accurately.
1. What other organs or implants can be obtained by 3D printing method?
ReplyDeleteI have heard that prints of various types of bones, corneas, etc. are successfully made.
2. In the next 10-20 years, do you think that 3D bioprinters will be present in most hospitals, and most patients will have access to printed organs?
In my opinion, 3D organ printers will not be present in any hospital, because the main problem will be the costs of purchasing such equipment and the costs of printing organs.
3. What technology could potentially replace the 3D printing of organs or be available faster?
I do not know this, but I think that perhaps organ degradation will be faster and, above all, cheaper.
4. Do you see any other advantages or disadvantages of the ability to implant 3D printed organs?
In my opinion, the advantages are obvious, because people with disabilities or serious accidents may have printed parts, be it bones or other organs, which will certainly make their lives easier. The disadvantage may be the use of materials from which the organ is made (it may be a reaction to any of the elements).