Professor of Biomedical Engineering Adam Feinberg and his team have created the first full-size 3D bioprinted human heart model using their
Freeform Reversible Embedding of Suspended Hydrogels (FRESH) technique.
Showcased in a recent video (below) by American Chemical Society and
created from MRI data using a specially built 3D printer, the model
mimics the elasticity of cardiac tissue and sutures realistically. This
milestone represents the culmination of two years of research, holding
both immediate promise for surgeons and clinicians, as well as long term
implications for the future of bioengineered organ research.To get more
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The FRESH technique of 3D bioprinting was invented in Feinberg’s lab to
fill an unfilled demand for 3D printed soft polymers, which lack the
rigidity to stand unsupported as in a normal print. FRESH 3D printing
uses a needle to inject bioink into a bath of soft hydrogel, which
supports the object as it prints. Once finished, a simple application of
heat causes the hydrogel to melt away, leaving only the 3D bioprinted
object.
While Feinberg’s lab has proven both the versatility and the fidelity of the FRESH technique, the major obstacle to achieving this milestone
was printing a human heart at full scale. This necessitated the building
of a new 3D printer custom made to hold a gel support bath large enough
to print at the desired size, as well as minor software changes to
maintain the speed and fidelity of the print.
Major hospitals often have facilities for 3D printing models of a
patient’s body to help surgeons educate patients and plan for the actual
procedure, however these tissues and organs can only be modeled in hard
plastic or rubber. Feinberg’s team’s heart is made from a soft natural
polymer called alginate, giving it properties similar to real cardiac
tissue. For surgeons, this enables the creation of models that can cut,
suture, and be manipulated in ways similar to a real heart. Feinberg’s
immediate goal is to begin working with surgeons and clinicians to fine
tune their technique and ensure it’s ready for the hospital setting.
“We can now build a model that not only allows for visual planning, but allows for physical practice,” says Feinberg. “The surgeon can
manipulate it and have it actually respond like real tissue, so that
when they get into the operating site they’ve got an additional layer of
realistic practice in that setting.”
