Guest_Jim_* Posted May 18, 2015 Posted May 18, 2015 Many people believe that 3D printing could lead to a revolution, as it allows for the efficient production of items, but it could also revolutionize medicine. Already we have seen 3D printers used to build a replacement windpipe for an infant, bow we could see it applied to repairing soft-tissue. Researchers at Technische Universitaet Muenchen have demonstrated that the 3D printing technique melt electrospinning writing could be used to build scaffolds that support human cartilage cells. Attempts to build cartilage supporting scaffolds have been made before, but what makes this different is that melt electrospinning writing. It allows for filaments to be made just five micrometers in diameter. This produces the necessary stiffness while also being small enough for cells to grow around the hydrogel scaffolding. Joint repair is one obvious use for this technology, but it could also be applied for heart tissue engineering and breast reconstruction. Naturally more study is needed before this is applied, but it is a very promising breakthrough. Source: Technische Universitaet Muenchen Back to original news post Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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