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- Put into the body: the new platform will make it cheaper and more accurate to print organs on a printer
Put into the body: the new platform will make it cheaper and more accurate to print organs on a printer
Russian scientists have launched Russia's first digital "factory" of cellular products, which will test the properties of biochernils and predict the behavior of various types of implants in the body. It is needed to predict the viability of various cellular structures — from cartilage and skin to areas of the liver and urethra — in 3D bioprinting. According to the scientists, the use of the new tool will help speed up the process of replacing organ donation with the production of personalized tissues "from a test tube" that will be printed from the patient's own cells. For more information about the technology, see the Izvestia article.
Both urethra, skin, and liver fragments are printed on a printer
Sechenov University has launched Russia's first digital biofabrication platform. This is the name given to the creation of artificial living organs from a person's own cells. This technology uses 3D bioprinting to create layered structures for transplantation and personalized medical devices. Back in February, scientists launched the production of such biomedical products for the restoration of vocal folds, eardrum and structures of the nasal cavity. The university is also conducting research on the creation of a tissue-engineered ureter and other organs.
The new development is an intelligent system for predicting the viability of cellular structures in 3D bioprinting. It allows scientists and students to simulate cell viability conditions even before starting laboratory experiments: to predict hypoxia zones in future tissues, to select the optimal composition of bio ink and printing modes.
This dramatically reduces the number of unsuccessful attempts, saves expensive materials and accelerates the transition from an idea to clinical application, the university told Izvestia.
— We have combined many years of laboratory research experience with two unique computational models that allow us to visualize and predict the behavior of cells in three-dimensional space. And we received a patent for the database underlying the system," said Namig Samedov, head of the Information Systems and Digital Services Development Center.
The platform is integrated into the work of the university's research groups involved in the creation of bioprinted tissues, from cartilage and skin to complex structures such as areas of the liver and urethra, the university emphasized.
3D bioprinting is a technology for creating three-dimensional cell-based models using 3D printing, which preserves the functions and viability of cells. For this purpose, biochernils are used — specialized materials that serve as ink for bioprinting. They can consist of living cells, biomaterials, growth factors, and other biological structures.
How can donor organs be replaced?
In the field of regenerative medicine, such a platform helps to plan the printing of personalized implants, reducing the risks of rejection and failures, scientists told Izvestia. It can potentially be useful for startups and biotech companies as an analytical tool for the development of new biomaterials and biochernels. And in the pharmaceutical industry, the platform allows you to model and then create tissues for testing new drugs, taking into account the individual characteristics of patients.
"The platform is the digital twin of the entire biofabrication process," said Polina Bikmulina, head of the Biofabrika Design Center. "It allows us to move from empirical methods to predictable and controlled technologies, which paves the way for the large—scale introduction of bioprinting into practical healthcare.
Biofabrication is one of the most promising areas of modern medicine, and this development solves very important tasks in this area, said Alexey Komyagin, Director of the Central Research Institute of the Russian State Medical University.
Such a tool will speed up the process of transition from organ donation to personalized implant production "by measure," Vladimir Zhukov, founder of the Biotech club and expert at Boiling Point Omsk, director of the technology company BruttoNetto, explained to Izvestia. The creators of the development solve a key problem in the production of bioprinted fabrics — the high cost of R&D and the unpredictability of experiments.
"Reducing the resource and time spent on research will allow involving more research teams in this process, making the process of creating new tissues and organs predictable and scalable," the expert noted.
In addition to science and the field of implant manufacturing, this development will find application in pharmacology and will solve ethical issues: in the future, we will switch from testing drugs on animals to using artificial tissues in preclinical studies that take into account human physiology and pathology, the specialist noted.
In the near future, the platform will be available to a wide range of scientific and medical organizations. The scientists emphasize that in any case, all printed cellular products must undergo a full range of tests.
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