Need a liver? In the future, you can 3D Bioprint one. Keith Murphy of
biotech company
Organovo presented advances in the process of bioprinting human liver
tissues:
The liver is incredibly tiny -- just half a millimetre thick and four
millimetres wide. Yet this minute organ, with little visual resemblance
to the real thing in its petri dish home, manages to replicate key processes
done by the real thing. It produced the protein albumin and synthesised
plasma glycoproteins fibrinogen and transferrin. These are all vital
in getting nutrients, hormones and drugs to the blood and the rest of
the body. It also generated fat-carrying cholesterol. For its detoxification
functions, the liver also needs to produce certain enzymes including
CYP 1A2 and CYP 3A4 -- which this tiny organ precursor also did. Its
albumin production was between five and nine times more than in 2D flat
cell structures engineered.
Liat Clark of Wired UK has the story:
here.
No comments:
Post a Comment