Oct 26, 2015 | By Alec
If only one part of 3D printing technology can be called revolutionary, it must surely be the life-saving biomedical applications that are currently under development. Though most of those studies are projected to take years to complete, a new and exciting breakthrough has just been announced in China. Revotek, a company based in Chengdu in southwestern China, has just announced that their custom-made bio 3D printer is now able to 3D print blood vessel systems, complete with the unique hollow structures of real vessels and even multiple layers of different cells. This is believed to be the first machine capable of doing so, as commercially available bioprinters cannot yet do so.
According to the company’s chairman Yang Keng, this is a complete breakthrough in the stem cell field. ‘It means that Revotek’s 3D bioprinting system for 3D printing stem cells is now complete. It includes a medical imaging cloud platform, biological inks, a 3D bio-printer and a post-print processing system – a four core technological system. With it, organ rebuilding is now becoming a reality in the near future,’ he says.
At the heart of this technology are the Biosynsphere biological bricks, a stem cell culture system that aims to develop personalized cells for organ regeneration. It consists of seed cells (stem cells, differentiated cells and more) and bio-inks filled with growth factors and nutrients. When combined with other materials, this 3D bioprinter creates layered cell structures that can be cultivated to form tissues with physiological functions. ‘3D bioprinting is very different from 3D printing industrial titanium, bio-ceramics, polymers or other raw materials, for instance for 3D printed dentures, prosthetics, cars or houses,’ Ren Dong Chuan says, the chairman of Revotek’s mother company BlueRay Inno. ‘The fundamental difference is in activity, with 3D bioprinting systems extruding cell components that are biologically active.’
The 3D printer now built by Revoteks includes two print heads, that work alternately while extruding bioinks. It’s also very quick, being able to 3D print a 10 cm long blood vessel in just two minutes. ‘We create special environmental and biological conditions for our bio-bricks, making it possible to differentiate the cells as we need. So we can print each layer with different cell,’ said Professor Kang Yu Jian, who led the research team. He is also member of the Academy of Toxicological Sciences in the US. He was previously involved in the world’s first heart transplant case, involving a 3D printed artificial heart and a pig patient.
Professor Kang Yu Jian built this ‘bio-brick’ 3D printing technology after working on smaller accumulating breakthroughs for a number of years. Key is that these stem cells in vitro can be accurately controlled, making even organ 3D printing possible. ‘Constructing any organ requires vessels that transport nutrients to them, and with this ‘bio-brick’ technology we have successfully achieved vessel revascularization with help of this 3D bio-printer,’ he said.
Company chairman Yang Keng further announced that China’s first top level medical imaging cloud data center will be built in Chengdu in the near future. ‘Building a platform will not only provide a viable support system for the 3D printing of digital models, but will also provide us with an effective tool for dealing with bottleneck problems during future medical treatment procedures,’ he says.
In the near future, Revotek plans to invest in companies around the world, as well acquiring business, importing 3D bioprinting and medicine solutions, regenerative medicines and the necessary personnel, technologies and laboratories. As part of the press conference, Revotek also signed a cooperative agreement with UK-based Dundee University. Prof. Sir Alfred Cuschieri, developer of the minimal invasive surgery technology, announced that he will expand the cooperation to New York, Hong Kong, Singapore and other research centers.
A few days ago, Revotek was also visited by Jim Rogers, the founder of investing house Quantum Fund. Especially interested in bioprinting innovations, materials and the medical imaging cloud platform, he discussed potential applications with professor Kang Yu Jian. ‘3D bio-printing technology not only has vital scientific value for the future, but will have a corresponding market value as well. In the US and in global capital markets, the 3D concept, the concepts of biological medicine and intelligent manufacturing have been investment hotspots,’ Rogers say. ‘3D bio-printing covers much more than a single discipline, as its high-tech features, the concept of life sciences will also become the focus of future investments. It will lead to a revolutionary breakthrough in tissue engineering, regenerative medicine and medical research.’
Posted in 3D Printer
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Alvaro wrote at 10/27/2015 2:09:23 AM:
Amazing! Many lifes will be save worldwide
Bill wrote at 10/26/2015 12:50:40 PM:
Wow! This is incredibly excitingly! Wising the company the best!