Print me a new kidney, please

December 9, 2009

3D Bioprinting new blood vessels or even organs may be possible in the future. A first step has been taken with the first commercial bioprinter, by Organovo. It currently prints cell structures but nobody has dared to put them in their bodies yet. So while this looks like a promising development, I’d take good care of your body just a little longer – say, 30 years or so?

Comments

• Michael Williams
  December 9, 2009 at 6:58 pm
  When will Angelina be able to print her own Ethiopian baby? On a more serious note, Kidneys can be transplanted. I’d be more impressed if they could print spinal cord material.

• Kristopher Reed
  December 10, 2009 at 4:36 am
  The real question is when will Shapeways be offering this as a material option. I think it would help me with designing my robotic implants.

• Nick Taylor
  December 11, 2009 at 3:04 am
  If I had one of these I think I’d use it to print a brain. A back-up brain… a smaller one (it’s amazing what they can do these days, and apparently I only use about 10% of my brain anyway)… a smaller one, but one that’s still hosted in my own body – with some sort of wire connecting them so I’m actually thinking with both of them at the same time.

• David Drummond
  December 12, 2009 at 2:55 am
  Print me a new liver, please.

• Shapeways Blog
  July 3, 2012 at 7:23 pm
  Researchers at University of Pennsylvania have announced a breakthrough in 3D Printing human organs, as they demonstrated how to generate blood vessels to give life to the surrounding tissue. Most previous examples of bioprinting had been limited.