Portable Bio-printer Can Produce Living Skin

kralizec (70)in #science • 5 years ago

The first mobile bio-printer that uses hydrogel with skin cells of the patients just went through the first tests. Now it will go through a clinical trial with human patients.

Blazius CC BY-SA 3.0

Be also sure to check out my other posts and follow me @kralizec and subscribe to my Youtube channel at Kralizec Gaming Youtube Channel

Imagine, you've just suffered some burns and are laying in the hospital. A bio-printer comes to your bed and prints new skin made from your own tissue straight to your body. Or you are a victim of an accident and the printer prints acceptable, though less ideal, skin on you before you even get to the hospital. Do you know what’s best about this idea? It may not be that far away.

Scientists and engineers from the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine build the first mobile bio-printer capable of printing living two-layered skin straight at the patient's wounds. Sean Murphy – the research lead – says their technology is unique mainly because of its mobility but also its ability to preliminary exterminate large skin injuries and then apply to new skin cells to wherever they are most needed to heal the injury.

So, how does the bio-printer work? The main types of skin cells – fibroblasts and keratinocytes are easily obtainable by a quick biopsy. Fibroblasts make the intercellular matter and collagen making it vital for healing. And Keratinocytes are by far the most numerous skin cells. The cells got from the patient are mixed with a hydrogel and used as living ink for the bio-printer. After an analysis made by the bio-printer prints new skin on the ideal places making the healing process faster.

After a successful round of pre-clinical trials, the first human clinical trials will now take place. Nowadays, similar treatments use skin-grafts. But those often have a problem of not having enough skin to transplant, especially when the amount of damaged skin is large. In those situations, you need a skin from a donor but that can often be rejected.

Using bio-printers could reduce the number of skin-grafts used as even though they often help the patient it is still a pretty drastic shock for an already damaged body. The bio-printers could provide us with new skin quickly and easily making the patients lives much easier.

Sources:

If you like the content I’m producing about science maybe you will like the content I produce about gaming as well! Be sure to check out my other posts!

#blog #news #steemstem #health