bpod-mrc:

21 May 2013
Living Ink

This is no ordinary printout. The pattern has been created not by ink, but by living human cells. Two types &ndash; stem cells (stained red) and blood vessel wall cells (stained green) &ndash; have been positioned on a patch using a device that&rsquo;s similar to an office inkjet printer. Each cell type is released onto the patch in a set order, just as droplets of ink are printed onto paper. When the patch was applied to a damaged rat heart, the stem cells were able to help the blood vessels regenerate. Cells printed into a grid like this did a better job than those randomly jumbled up on the patch. Scientists now are beginning to print cells in three dimensions, creating made-to-order structures that resemble living tissues. Perhaps one day they will be able to print out whole organs at the touch of a button.
Written by Emma Stoye
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Wenzhong Li, Gustav Steinhoff
Reference and Translation Center for Cardiac Stem Cell Therapy, University of Rostock, Germany
Copyright Elsevier 2012
Published in Biomaterials 32(35): 9218-9230

