Printing artificial skin
Medical 3D printers raise hopes of healing with artificial skin.
MEDICAL 3D PRINTER. The fascinating technology of three-dimensional printing is also producing astonishing results in Germany. The 3D laboratory of the Technische Universität Berlin is attracting considerable interest with its printouts of face scans (photograph). The development of artificial tissue is a focus of attention at Laser-Zentrum Hannover (LZH). Its Biofabrication Group has succeeded in printing artificial skin tissue. Blood vessels also grew when small pieces of this tissue, only a few millimetres in size, were implanted in mice. This raises hopes of new medical applications: for example, artificially produced skin could help patients with serious burns. Researchers also expect to make new discoveries by studying cell behaviour in printed 3D structures.
