Relevant statistics show that of the 1.5 million organ failure cases in China, only 10,000 people are able to get organ transplants, and more people can only deteriorate or even die when they wait for a ligand. If 3D printing can solve this problem, it will undoubtedly become the focus of the market. However, biological information processing, high-precision printers, etc. are currently the biggest bottleneck for 3D bioprinting, and it will take time to solve this series of problems.

With the “3D printing fever” that has been continuously set off around the world in recent years, the curiosity of the forerunners is no longer satisfied with printing some toy ornaments, plastic cups, and other conventional items. They have turned their attention to the broader biomedical field of imagination.

Although 3D printing has broad prospects in the biomedical market, the four major technical problems of biological data processing, appropriate biomaterials, printing equipment development, and survival of printed organisms are the most difficult bones faced by current researchers. .

Professor Chen Jimin of the Laser Engineering Research Institute of Beijing University of Technology told reporters that the application of 3D printing in biomedicine is a process from far to near. “An optimistic estimate will take another 5 to 10 years to achieve a breakthrough.”

Open the "private custom" health era

Academician Dai Kejian of the Chinese Academy of Engineering introduced a case in which doctors used CT parameters to capture a lipomatte girl's leg and entered the data into a 3D printer and printed a 3D model of the 3D lower extremity skeleton of the girl's leg, eventually helping the girl's feet. upright.

From this case, we can explore the clues of 3D printing in biomedical applications. What is the overall picture of 3D biomedical printing?

Xu Mingen, a professor at Hangzhou University of Electronic Science and Technology, explained that 3D bioprinting is based on a three-dimensional design model and uses software to separate layers of discrete and numerically controlled molding methods. It uses 3D printing methods to shape biological materials, especially cells and other materials. This technology can be used to create artificial tissue, artificial organs, various artificial limbs, surgical guides and a series of materials.

In short, the application of 3D printing in clinical medicine, on the one hand, is to scan the patient's lesions and use a 3D printer to print the 2D images as a 3D model, allowing the patient and the doctor to observe and communicate more intuitively, and respond according to the model. The actual situation is tailored to the surgical plan to ensure the accuracy of the operation. On the other hand, the 3D model is used to print live cells with special biological "ink" to incubate bionic organs and living tissues in vitro and implant them in the human body.

Dai Keji told reporters, "Since all the conventional prostheses are standard models, 3D printing can not only formulate the best surgical plan for the patient, but also can install the most suitable prosthesis for the patient."

In the wave of personalized consumption, individualized health plans are undoubtedly a major trend. Academician Kang Yujian, a member of the Institute of Toxicology and director of the Blu-ray 3D Bioprinting Institute, believes that the introduction of 3D printing technology in clinical medicine has opened the era of “precision medicine” and “custom health”.

Although the use of 3D printing in biomedical applications is at its infancy, there have been many impressive results in the development of just a few years. In addition to prosthetic features such as prostheses, dentures, and skeletal stents, scientists have begun to study active human tissues and organs, or fill the gaps in organ transplants in the future.

Chen Jimin stated that the application of 3D printing in the medical field is a process from far to near. "The farther away from the human body, such as prosthetic limbs and bone joints, has become more popular. Conversely, applications that are closer to the human body, such as tissue repair And in vivo organ transplantation, optimistic estimates will take another 5 to 10 years to achieve a breakthrough."

There are many problems to be solved

3D biomedical printing attracts not only scientists and enthusiasts, but also wins the favor of all kinds of capital. It is understood that some domestic companies such as the first three-dimensional, Blu-ray development (600,466, consulting) and Guangyun Da (300,227, consulting), have begun to get involved in the 3D biomedical printing this blue ocean. The market research institute LuxResearch predicts that 3D printing technology will reach the scale of 1.9 billion US dollars in the medical market in 2025.

However, people in the industry believe that it is still too early for the real development of 3D biology to become industrialization.

Kang Yujian believes that biological information processing, bio-ink research and development, high-precision printers, and post-printing processing are currently the biggest bottleneck for 3D bioprinting.

In Kang Yujian's opinion, before printing a bioprosthesis, it is necessary to understand its full information and perform two-dimensional to three-dimensional transformation based on the information it has mastered. Some complex organs, such as the heart, liver, etc., due to the dense distribution of blood vessels, cells, and other tissues, have no effect on the bionics that are not completely printed out by the information of such organs.

At the same time, the research and development of "bio-ink", the material needed for printing, is still relatively difficult. It mainly shows how the cells work, how they are arranged, and how to control their microenvironment.

In addition to the above-mentioned technical problems, 3D bioprinting also faces policy gaps and ethical issues.

Increase investment in basic research

Although 3D printing can indeed make many impossible possibilities possible in the field of biomedicine, it is regrettable that there are no effective means at home and abroad to solve the aforementioned bottlenecks. The complexity of human tissue also makes 3D biomedical printing impossible to be applied on a large scale in the short term.

Chen Jimin stated that the current medical level cannot fully analyze human organs thoroughly. "Scientific research workers should devote more energy to basic research and master rich biological information before they can further develop 3D printing."

Kang Yujian suggested that companies engaged in 3D bioprinting should establish relevant IT departments to focus on the collection, analysis and transformation of biological information and data.

It is understood that the current working principle of 3D biomedical printing is layered stacking. Liquid materials, powder materials, and metal materials are sprayed through the nozzles and then cured in layers. Finally, three-dimensional objects are formed.

In addition, the process of organ printing in principle will cause some damage to the activity of biological cells, which requires some special design and treatment in order to preserve its higher activity. And, to control the micro-environment in which the cells are located, it is necessary to supply enough cell culture fluid. Chen Jimin pointed out: "If you want to achieve rapid prototyping and remain active, with existing biomaterials, it will take time to solve this problem."

For the problem of living organisms after printing, Chen Jimin believes that although cells on the surface of bionic organs can have certain activity, how to enter inside organs with a certain thickness and feed nutrients into them to make them become a living body from a dead body is At present, researchers are conquering the direction. "At present, researchers are already trying to print out densely packed capillaries and distribute them to every corner of the organs.

It is worth mentioning that Xu Mingen and his team have successfully printed out human liver cells, adipose tissue, and so on through 3D bioprinting technology. The printed cells have a survival rate of 90% and can survive for four months.