With its own cells as raw materials, the first 3D printing ear transplantation was successful! More complex organs can be printed in the future

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The first clinical trial of human cell printing organ was successful .

Regenerative medicine manufacturing company 3DBio Therapeutics Announced on Thursday , A child who was born with dysplasia of his right ear 20 A - year-old woman transplanted her own cells 3D Printed ears .

Experts say , Successful transplantation is part of the first clinical trial of successful medical application of this technology , It is an amazing progress in the field of tissue engineering .

3DBio Therapeutics Introduce , The printed shape of the new ear exactly matches the shape of the woman's left ear , The company said , This year, 3 The new ear transplanted in May will continue to regenerate cartilage tissue , Make it look and feel like a natural ear .

“ This is definitely a big deal ！” Adam, Professor of materials science and engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, biomedical engineering • Feinberg (Adam Feinberg) Express .

Seven years to sharpen a sword

The result of the lady's reconstruction operation was 3DBio Announce at a press conference . Out of concern about patent rights , The company has not publicly disclosed the technical details of this process , This makes it more difficult for external experts to evaluate it .

The company said , Federal regulators have reviewed the trial design , And formulated strict production standards , When the research is done , The data will be published in medical journals .

in addition , Include 11 Clinical trials including patients are still ongoing .

Transplantation may fail or cause unexpected complications . however , Doctors and company officials say , Because these cells come from the patient's own tissue , New ears are less likely to be rejected by the body .

3DBio After seven years' efforts, the company has achieved success , This is one of the recent breakthroughs in seeking to improve organ and tissue transplantation .

The company has used 3D Printing technology produces custom prosthetics made of plastic and light metal , however , The ear in this case was made from a small mass of cells extracted from the woman's deformed ear , It is the first known made from living tissue 3D Examples of printing organs .

The whole printing and migration process is divided into five steps .

First, the surgeon removed half a gram of cartilage from the woman's small ear deformity residue , then , He put this thing , Along with her healthy ears 3D Scanning pictures , From San Antonio to Long Island, queens 3DBio building .

The second step , stay 3DBio In the building , The patient's chondrocytes were isolated from tissue samples , Grow in a proprietary nutrient solution , Proliferate into billions of cells .

The third step , Mix living cells with the company's collagen based bio ink ,“ It's like mixing chocolate chips into a cookie dough ice cream ”,3DBio Chief scientific officer of Nathaniel Bachrach say .

Step four , Collagen is inserted into a special through a syringe 3D Bioprinters , The printer ejects collagen in a steady stream from the nozzle , Spin fast , Form a mirror copy of the patient's healthy ears , The whole printing process lasted less than 10 minute .

Step five , The printed ear shape is then wrapped in a biodegradable protective shell , And it was delivered to the chief surgeon overnight in the cold storage , Then he implanted the ear under the patient's skin , Just above her mandible .

The external doctor is in charge of the operation , Other organs can be printed in the future

The patient is from Mexico , Congenital microtia , This is a rare congenital defect , Cause small deformities in the pinna or outside the ear ( It may also affect the hearing of the ear ).

After printing out the ears , A transplant is also needed , The operation was performed by a doctor outside the company .

“ It's so exciting , Sometimes I have to adjust myself a little ,”Arturo Bonilla The doctor said , He is a pediatric ear reconstruction surgeon in San Antonio , The woman was implanted . This test is performed by 3DBio Treatment company funded , But Dr Bonilla has no financial stake in the company .

Company executives say , With more research , This technology can be used to make many other alternative body parts , Including the intervertebral disc 、 nose 、 Reconstruction of knee meniscus and breast tumor after resection .

They say , some time ,3D Printing can produce even more complex vital organs , Like the liver 、 Kidneys and pancreas .

Mount Sinai Medical College (Mount Sinai’s Icahn School of Medicine) Head of the spine bioengineering laboratory James Iatridis say , Other printed tissue implants are also under development , But he did not know that there were other products in clinical trials .

“ such 3D The ear is a proof of concept , It can be used to evaluate the biocompatibility of living people 、 Shape matching and shape retention ,”Iatridis "Said Dr. .

For all that , The outer part of the ear is a relatively simple appendage , It's not so much functional , It's more about appearance .

Dr. Feinberg of Carnegie Mellon University cautioned that , To physical organs ( Like the liver 、 Kidneys 、 Heart and lungs ) The road is still long .

He said ：“ It's a pretty big jump from one ear to the intervertebral disc , But if you lack an ear , This is more realistic .”

Collagen based “ Bio ink ”

3D Print the manufacturing process to create a solid , From a digital model of a 3D object . This technique usually involves a computer-controlled printer depositing thin layers of material , To create the exact shape of the object .

Executives say ,3DBio The new ear implant from the treatment company integrates several proprietary technologies , The first is a way to replicate billions of small samples of patient cells .

The company's 3D The printer uses a collagen based “ Bio ink ”, This ink is safe in the human body , And keep all materials sterile .

All research and production are carried out in the same place , A new one in Queens 、 In humble brick buildings , Equipped with hygienic “ laboratory ”, The staff are wearing masks , Wear a full suit of work clothes 、 Gloves and boots .

up to now , This clinical trial consists of 11 Volunteers , Age from 6 To the age of 25 year , They will be followed for five years , To assess the long-term safety and aesthetic effects .

Reference report ：

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/02/health/ear-transplant-3d-printer.html

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41587-022-01354-7

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adma.202102661

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