Source: China Science and Technology Network - Science and Technology Daily

Currently, there are over 20 million people in Japan need skin grafts, bone, cartilage and joints and other tissues. Today announced the Affiliated Hospital of Medical University of Tokyo, the research team used 3D printer technology and genetic engineering, has developed a short production can be transplanted to human skin, bones and joints of technology.

Currently the main use of the practice of transplants from the patient himself outside the affected parts of excised tissue, which is a heavy burden to the patient's body. In addition, the use of animal tissues and plastics as raw materials, the use of 3D printer produced by the method of tissue transplantation. Organization and processes, although this method can reduce the suffering of patients, but there is risk of infection, and transplantation of human needs together two or three years, it is difficult to make the organization need a certain intensity of the skull and thigh bone and the like.

Affiliated Hospital, Professor of Medicine, University of Tokyo research team, led by household Yi noted that more than 70% of the basic skin, cartilage and bones structure is composed of collagen. They Fujifilm developed based on genetic engineering of recombinant human collagen peptide as the main material, which is mixed to extract the body from the patient's own stem cells and growth factors that promote cell proliferation and so on, then filled by improved medical 3D printer , while according to organize data in vivo computed tomography (CT) obtained within two to three hours can produce a desired tissue, and can make the organization of different shapes and sizes depending on the patient.

Features of the new technology is that it can reduce the risk of postoperative infection, the transplanted tissue and the body's natural fusion can be within a few months. This technique can also be used to make the liver and other organs, it is expected to make significant progress in regenerative medicine.

The team hope that after the approval of the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, for five years to make this technology a practical level.