Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) researchers have fabricated the first full-size three-dimensionally (3D) bioprinted human heart model from magnetic resonance imaging data, using the Freeform Reversible Embedding of Suspended Hydrogels (FRESH) method.
FRESH 3D printing injects bioink into a bath of hydrogel, which supports the object as it prints, while heat applied afterward melts the material and leaves only the bioprinted object.
Bioprinting a full-scale human heart required a new 3D printer tailored to hold a sizable gel support bath, and minor software modifications to maintain the speed and fidelity of the print. "We can now build a model that not only allows for visual planning, but allows for physical practice," says CMU's Adam Feinberg, a professor of biomedical engineering . "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."
From Carnegie Mellon University
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