Department of Science “Gazety.Ru” talks about how to print three-dimensional objects is used in modern medicine, about the benefits of the tablets thus produced, and how 3D-printers to help save the animals .
Technology of the physical three-dimensional objects using digital data – 3D-printing – was first developed by Charles Hull in 1984. The technology was patented two years later and became known as “stereolithography”. After obtaining a patent by Charles Hull 3D Systems he founded and developed the industry’s first machine for 3D-printing. Now the 3D-printer use in their work a digital model of the object you want to create, and then publish it to form part layer by layer of the required material.
How to print a kidney, not only
3D-printing technology It is used widely, for example, in the industry, for the manufacture of various parts of machines and equipment, construction, manufacturing weapons parts and housings experimental techniques, such as cars or mobile phones. A particular potential 3D-press has in the field of medicine: specialized companies create
3D-printers of internal organs with the help of living cells, artificial limbs, as well as for the production of drugs.
On May 6 ended in New York TechCrunch Disrupt conference, the company BioBots has introduced 3D-printer that prints organs of the human body, using the material of living cells. Manufactures complete donor organs, he still does not know how, but the samples of printed fabrics can already be used in many experiments that are traditionally carried out on laboratory animals. Bioprinter BioBots, developed by graduates of the University of Pennsylvania, looks like a typical 3D-format desktop printer, and even comparable to it at a price that is about $ 5000. Outwardly, it is also almost indistinguishable from a conventional device, produces bulky items:
steel frame placed on the control unit, the print head, adjustable stand and a set of ink cartridges. The main feature of BioBots that he prints using various biomaterials.
The samples are taken from human cells and then artificially propagated and used as a kind of 3D-ink. The printed organ or part thereof all cells initially held in place by microscopic supporting structures – and hydrogel combination thinnest plastic filaments. They act as “scaffolding” and the medium. When the cells establish their own relationship, will integrate and interact with each other by means of this connective tissue, the inclusion of foreign short-term impact of a collapse UV lamp. However, in the laboratory can not reproduce cellular immunity, control of multiple receptors and other features of living systems – which is why the creation of full-fledged donor organs with the help of three-dimensional printing is impossible.
Wheels for everyone
A more realistic application of 3D-printing in medicine is the manufacture of tablets. Scientists believe that most of the new technologies to benefit the children: a three-dimensional printing allows you to create drugs, just observing the required dosage. Currently, this represents a significant problem. Steve Tomlin, a pharmacist from London Children’s Hospital Evelina London Children’s Hospital, states : «This technology could revolutionize our views on the treatment of children. Weight children of different ages may range from 0.5 to 100 kg, which means that they require very different doses of drugs, so it is impossible to release all the right pill. Because of this, we resort to drugs in liquid form, although
all studies show: four children are more willing to take a pill than medicine. ”
When you create a tablet 3D-printer is used as a “black” drug and polymers, which are mixed with each other and form a layer-by-layer tablet. In addition to the accuracy of dosing and a wide variety of forms of the drug (for example, children can release tablet in the form of animals appropriate color) with the help of three-dimensional printing will be possible to provide better digestibility medications: International Journal of Pharmaceutics published article the authors of which were printed in the form of a tablet of paracetamol cube, pyramid, sphere, cylinder, and torus. The results showed that the most rapidly dissolving tablets pyramid, and the longest – tablet-cylinder. Among other things, the researchers argue: the production of tablets using the printer had no impact on their therapeutic properties.
Despite the fact that the three-dimensional printing, and are interested in medicine, such pharmaceutical giants as the British company GlaxoSmithKline , to the industrial production of tablets using the 3D-printer still needs to go through 5-10 years, experts believe. To do this, first of all, it will be necessary to settle the question of the certification of drugs and protecting patients against counterfeit. So, Ricky Wildman, an engineer from the University of Nottingham, comments : «Nobody wants to in a private home was a factory for the production of uncertified medicines. Perhaps it will be necessary to make sure that all the owners of 3D-printers obtained a special license to them. ”
Boney progress
It may seem that the use of three-dimensional printing in medicine is still a prospect of the future: There is some progress, but they are far from application in everyday life. However, it is not so:
use of 3D-printing for manufacturing artificial limbs and replacement parts human bones is absolutely real.
Last year, the “Times” tells about the unique operation, in which doctors replace the damaged resident of the Netherlands sickness skull on a plastic implant printed the 3D-printer. The basis for creating three-dimensional models of new bones were the tomographic images of the patient. Such prostheses are used extensively in veterinary medicine: recently, scientists have saved the lives of sea turtles, who was wounded and lost boat propeller beak. Nearly a dead turtle was taken to the Turkish Research Center, rescue and rehabilitation of sea turtles. With the help of medical 3D-Printing BTech Innovation to create a new turtle beak of medical titanium, so the animal was saved.
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