3D printed “bones” are made at room temperature for the first time using a special gel of living cells

A new innovation allows scientists to 3D print human bones from a person’s own living cells and, for the first time, the process was performed at room temperature.

A team from the Australian University of New South Wales-Sydney has created a “bio-ink” gel that contains the patient’s living bone cells in a solution of calcium phosphate, which are minerals needed for bone formation and maintenance.

Using a technique known as omnidirectional ceramic bioprinting in cell suspensions (COBICS), the gel is 3D printed directly into the patient’s bone cavity, instead of surgeons having to remove a piece from another location.

Then, the material hardens within minutes of exposure to body fluids and turns into bone nanocrystals that lock mechanically.

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A new innovation allows scientists to 3D print human bones from a person’s own living cells and, for the first time, the process was performed at room temperature

The act of 3D printing of bone-mimicking structures is not new, but the University of New South Wales-Sydney method allows the process to be done at room temperature for the first time.

This means that the bones can be created on the spot inside a medical room, along with the use of the patient’s own living cells.

Dr. Iman Roohani of the UNSW School of Chemistry said: “This is a unique technology that can produce structures that closely mimic bone tissue.”

It could be used in clinical applications where there is a high demand for in situ repair of bone defects, such as those caused by trauma, cancer or if a large piece of tissue is resected.

A team from the Australian University of New South Wales-Sydney has created a “bio-ink” gel that contains the patient’s living bone cells in a solution of calcium phosphate, which are minerals needed for bone formation and maintenance.

Prior to this work, if a patient needed a piece of bone, doctors should remove a section from another location in the body.

And 3D printing was only available by first going to a lab to fabricate structures using high-temperature furnaces and toxic chemicals.

Associate Professor Kristopher Kilian, who co-developed the revolutionary technology, said: “It produces a dry material which is then brought into a clinical setting or laboratory, where it is washed thoroughly and then added to living cells in it.” says Professor Kilian. .

Using a technique known as omnidirectional ceramic bioprinting in cell suspensions (COBICS), the gel is 3D printed directly into the patient’s bone cavity instead of surgeons having to remove a piece from a different location.

The special ink made for the process forms a structure chemically similar to bone building blocks, according to scientists.

“The interesting thing about our technique is that you can extrude it directly in a place where there are cells, like a cavity in the patient’s bone. We can go directly to the bone where there are cells, blood vessels and fat and we can print a bone-like structure that already contains living cells, right in that area.

“Currently, there are no technologies that can do this directly.”

The special ink made for the process forms a structure chemically similar to bone building blocks, according to scientists.

“The ink is formulated in such a way that the conversion is fast, non-toxic in a biological environment and is initiated only when the ink is exposed to body fluids, providing ample working time for the end user, for example, surgeons,” said Dr. Roohani.

He explains that the ink combines with a collagenous substance that contains living cells, “allows the in-situ fabrication of bone-like tissues, which can be suitable for bone tissue engineering applications, disease modeling, drug screening and in situ bone reconstruction.” and osteochondral defects. ‘