Posted on 04/23/2013 12:29:52 PM PDT by LibWhacker
Lab-grown livers have come a step closer to reality thanks to a 3D printer loaded with cells (see video above). Created by Organovo in San Diego, California, future versions of the system could produce chunks of liver for transplant.
The mini-livers that Organovo made are just half a millimetre deep and 4 millimetres across but can perform most functions of the real thing. To create them, a printer builds up about 20 layers of hepatocytes and stellate cells – two major types of liver cell. Crucially, it also adds cells from the lining of blood vessels. These form a delicate mesh of channels that supply the liver cells with nutrients and oxygen, allowing the tissue to live for five days or longer. The cells come from spare tissue removed in operations and biopsies.
(Excerpt) Read more at newscientist.com ...
*ping*
Frankenprinter
Wow I’m way behind the news if they’re doing this kind of thing with 3d printers
Next challenge, creating a new brain for Joe Biden
Liver cells are very important towards predicting human metabolism (and toxicity) of proposed therapeutics. Their short lifespan makes using them very expensive and hard to standardize. This type of technology could be a huge leap forward in long living liver cells used for research.
I first read that as “tiniest human livelier.”
Thought: Jeesh, FR is headed downhill faster than I thought.
They could do that with a 2D printer.
/johnny
I have a couple of handles of Belvedere for celebrating this achievement with as soon as they can build a liver thats a little bit bigger.
wow, you can print a real liver with a 3-D printer. Hummmm, I wonder if you can print a bigger...... No, never mind.
Correction: “Next challenge, creating a brain for Joe Biden”
I bought a few share of this company awhile back. It’s still penny stock but this is good news!
Lol, that sounds good. I had to look it up. Expensive?
Prolly more affordable in Poland, though...
May look into it myself.
only 3.45 as of closing today. I had studied up on their research, and although they are not making money right now, at that price I bought a few shares because they may be successful. I’ve lost more money playing blackjack!
Too bad they can’t make water.
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