Dimensional 3 - D Printing in Organ Transplantation

An insufficient supply of organs for transplant is an ever present obstacle for transplant medicine. A long term resolution of these problems is being sought by developing ways to engineer live organs from a person’s own cells. Previous tissue manufacturing approaches involved seeding either adult or stem cells onto various 3D scaffolds, with subsequent cell proliferation and differentiation into spatially-arranged functional tissue. However, the approach has not been successful as organs are very complicated. Advances in our understanding of an organ’s tissue components and progress in 3D printing technology have allowed a new era of bioprinting to unfold. Bioprinting is described as a 3D printing system that provides precise accumulation and arrangement of living cells, extracellular matrix elements, biochemical components, proteins, and bio-substances on solid or gel reservoirs that can closely mimic the living organ which is being artificially constructed [1-4]. Substantial achievements in understanding the intricate structure of organs have led researchers to conclude that artificial organ construction demands highly accurate placement of these components including complex vascular integration [5]. Recent advances in the development of 3D printers utilizing laser-based, inkjet-based and extrusion systems have facilitated the development of techniques that allow the construction of these intricate organ structures with precise arrangement of matrix, vasculature and cells [6]. Bio-printing is providing a greater ability in tissue engineering and researchers are hoping to be able to manufacture de novo living organs for transplant in the near future to alleviate the chronic shortage of Hanyang Med Rev 2014;34:158-164 http://dx.doi.org/10.7599/hmr.2014.34.4.158