The day has finally arrived when advanced technology has completely emerged with medical science. The innovation of mobile bedside bioprinter is a proof enough to consider the statement. Imagine a day when a bioprinter carries patients’ own cells to treat large wounds – the day is not far off. Moreover, scientists have further innovated the bioprinter in a mobile skin bioprinting system, which can move to patients’ bedsides. Mobile bedside bioprinter treats the large wounds directly- burning layer by layer through printing skin to start the healing process.
The scientists from Wake Forest Institute have invented such unique system which allows printing bi-layered skin directly into a wound. However the unique aspect of such technology is the ability to offer on-site treatment of extensive wounds. Along with this, system mobility and direct deposition of the cells to create skin wherever needed have added extra advantages.
This medical revolution helps millions of people suffering from non-healing wounds and cannot avail multiple treatments due to high cost. Furthermore, there is a survey on burn injuries where such injuries account for 10-30%, mostly comes from military personnel.
Bioprinter Technology Replaced Painful Skin Grafts
Major human skin cells – epidermal keratinocytes and dermal fibroblasts- can easily isolate through biopsy of uninjured tissues. Among them, fibroblasts can synthesize the collagen and extracellular matrix which play a key role in would healing process. Whereas, the epidermal keratinocytes are the predominant cells, found in the skin’s outermost layer.
Bioprinter carries a mixture of these cells and an integrated imaging technology involves a device, which scans the wound. Moreover, such device feeds the data into a software for knowing the exact direction of cells deposition in the wound. However doing so accelerates and replicates the formation of normal skin.
Currently, researchers are planning to conduct clinical trials in humans. They are choosing the method over skin grafting as this bioprinter system does not risk immune rejection or scar formation.
