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| 3-D printed liver tissue--Courtesy of Organovo |
Having shown some success with a 3-D printed liver, Organovo Holdings is setting its sights on using the technology to fabricate synthetic tissue for testing--starting with healthy kidneys and breast cancer.
3-D printing is hardly a new development in the medical device industry: It's used to make everything from hearing aids to dental crowns. But Organovo Holdings ($ONVO) has taken the technology one step further, producing living tissue designed for use in testing and organ transplants.
The San Diego-based company will use 3-D printers to produce tissue that helps researchers quickly test many samples from different cell types, Bloomberg reports. The tissue could also be used to create organs, blood vessels and skin. Organovo's "strips" or tubes of cells could eventually "patch" faulty organs, CEO Keith Murphy told the news outlet.
However, the technology is still in R&D limbo: Strips are 5 to 6 years from clinical trials, and blood supply and structural issues complicate the development of full-blown organs, Murphy said. If all goes well, the company will present data on test tissues for breast cancer and healthy kidneys by March 2015, according to Bloomberg.
This isn't the company's first foray into 3-D printing: In April 2013, the biotech company unveiled an artificial liver created with 3-D bioprinting technology. The liver--which replicates features of natural tissues--was designed to help drug companies more accurately predict liver toxicities. Organovo plans on launching the product in 2014, the company said in a statement.
Organovo's artificial tissue has garnered headlines, but researchers have already made progress in the field of medical 3-D printing. Earlier this month, a consultant orthopedic surgeon in England used his hospital's 3-D printer to make a titanium pelvis to facilitate a hip replacement, according to a report by The Telegraph. In 2012, Princeton University engineers announced the 3-D printing of a bionic ear.
While scientists have discovered innovative uses for traditional 3-D printing, Organovo's artificial tissue could jump-start existing technology. 3-D printed tissue could help show genetic differences in a drug's effectiveness. Skin, blood vessels and organs could be printed for patients at a treatment center, Anthony Atala, director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, said to Bloomberg. More academic centers and biotech outfits will most likely jump on the bandwagon, hoping to cash in on a profitable--and innovative--market.
- read the Bloomberg story