{"id":398,"date":"2018-05-02T04:45:12","date_gmt":"2018-05-02T04:45:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sed-developments.co.uk\/home\/?p=398"},"modified":"2024-12-13T08:15:48","modified_gmt":"2024-12-13T08:15:48","slug":"five-fabulous-3d-printing-concepts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sed-developments.co.uk\/home\/five-fabulous-3d-printing-concepts\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Fabulous 3D Printing Concepts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As we noted in our last blog \u2018<\/a><\/strong>An Introduction to 3D printing and Inspiration for you<\/strong><\/a>\u2019<\/a><\/strong>, 3D printing is here to stay. And all for the good we say. In that vein, we thought we\u2019d take you outside the box and look at the innovation 3D printing is providing. Here are five fabulous 3D printing concepts under development as I type. We\u2019re not talking \u2018let\u2019s change the colour of ink printing\u2019 \u2013 we\u2019re talking life-changing\/ life-saving innovations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. 3D Printed Viable Organs<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"3D
3D Printed Organ courtesy of The Guardian – one of Five Fabulous 3D Printing Concepts<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

You think that\u2019s far-fetched. No \u2013 not at all. As this article in the Guardian<\/a><\/strong> newspaper explains. One of the leaders in this development is Erik Gatenholm. Together with Hector Martinez, Gatenholm has created the company Cellink<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

They\u2019ve been developing BioInk to enable the 3D printing of living tissue. As with conventional 3D printing, you design the organ you want\/need, change that into an STL file and upload to the printer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 3D printer builds the organ one layer at a time, slice by slice.
Simple structures such as skin or cartilage are printed in the first instance later progressing to more complex organs. There is potential for their use in human transplants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cosmetics companies might use 3D printed skin to test products on thus eliminating any need for animal testing. Both LO\u2019Oreal and San Diego based Orgavano are investigating this possibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bioprinted skin will be with us within five years and cartilage transplants could be with us within ten years. Which opens up the question, \u2018Just because we can \u2013 should we?\u2019 What might be the consequences of creating replacement organs? And every action has a consequence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. 3D Printed Living Tattoos<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"Living
Living Tree Tattoo, from MIT<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Back in December 2017, MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), showcased a \u2018living tattoo\u2019. Using a special ink, made from genetically programmed living cells. The cells within the ink are engineered to respond to chemical stimuli.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Led by Xuanhe Zhao (the Noyce career development Professor in MIT\u2019s dept of Mechanical Engineering) and Timothy Lu (associate Professor of biological engineering, electrical engineering and computer science) researchers discovered that bacterial cells are the strongest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The cells are added to a mixture of hydrogel and nutrients to feed the cells. This paste produced goes through a custom-made 3D printer, to print the tattoo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each branch of the tree contains cells, who are each sensitive to a different chemical compound. Before applying the tattoo, the research testing, applied the chemical compounds to the back of the hand. Then, in a nutshell:
Once applied, and over a period of time, parts of the tattoo light up as the cells react to the chemical compound. It is, of course, much more complex than this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At this stage it\u2019s research and experiment but Timothy Lu asks us to think of internal uses too. What if a living tattoo could identify a change in your health, anticipate a stroke or heart attack? This video explains in more detail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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