It might sound like a sci-fi fantasy, but scientists are determined that one day we ll be able to 3D-print vital organs, like the heart, kidney or liver, to use in transplants.
Cardiovascular disease and stroke kill more people globally than anything else, according to the World Health Organization, and synthetic organs could help enormously in overcoming issues of organ shortage and the risks of patients bodies rejecting them.
A tiny, cherry-sized print
While we re not quite there yet, a new development from Israel shows we re only getting closer. A team of scientists at Tel Aviv University say they have successfully printed a miniature heart-shaped prototype using human tissue.
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The tiny mold is about the size of a rabbit s heart — or a cherry — and can contract like a muscle, but doesn t have the ability to actually pump blood.
"People have managed to 3D-print the structure of a heart in the past, but not with cells or with blood vessels," Tal Dvir, who led the research, told a press conference.
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Israeli scientist holds 3D print-out of heart prototype
The heart prototype was created using human tissue
Researchers created the heart using a biopsy of fatty tissue taken from a human patient. Using the patient s own tissue was particularly important in reducing the risk of implant rejection, Dvir said.
Small blood vessels still pose a challenge
But other scientists say we still have a long way to go before we re able to create a human heart suitable for transplants using 3D printing technology.
"The printed blood vessel network demonstrated in this study is still limited," Felix Schönrath, physician from the German Heart Center in Berlin, told DW.
The surgeon described the Israeli prototype as a heart-shaped shell with two chambers, rather than something that could be considered an organ.
Human heart transplant
Many patients on heart-transplant lists die while waiting
Scientists are still yet to formulate a way of imaging all of the small-diameter blood vessels of the heart, Schönrath said, in order to create an accurate blueprint. Current 3D printers also remain limited by their resolution size.
While the state of the Israeli researchers 3D print was comparable with that of an embryo s heart, Dvir said larger human hearts require the same technology.
The team hope to transplant the printed hearts into animal models in about a year s time.
