Research institute aims to build a 3D 'heart' printer within a decade

FIRST it was trinkets. Then it was spare parts. Now, the future of 3D "printing" is aimed at mending broken hearts.

Using a patient's stem cells to grow new heart tissue which can be "printed" into shape for a transplant is th

FIRST it was trinkets. Then it was spare parts. Now, the future of 3D "printing" is aimed at mending broken hearts.

The emergence of 3D printing technology in recent years promises to revolutionise everything from manufacturing to electronics, from food to surgery.

A new project believes the technology can solve the problem of heart replacement surgery by "building" components from a patient's own fat stem cells.

The Cardiovascular Innovation Institute in Kentucky, United States, is developing the system with the intention of "printing out" the components of a complete heart. This includes muscle, blood vessels, valves and neural tissue.

"We can print individual components of the heart, but we're building next-generation printers to build the heart from the bottom up," scientific director Stuart Williams said.

The process involves layering living human tissue cell-by-cell in the shapes and patterns needed. The fact such tissue uses stem cells from the patient largely eliminates existing "rejection" concerns produced by donated organs.

The printers are unlikely to have enough "resolution" to build a fully functional heart, he said. But the template it would lay down would allow the cells to follow their own biological development to self-organise in a functioning manner.

The organisation believes it can produce a working example within a decade.

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