A new nose in 20 minutes?

Ear damaged? Nose smashed? The 3D printing of human cartilage should, researchers hope, lead to implantable replacements for trauma victims who need reconstructive surgery. Scientists in Zurich have developed a process that could enable hospitals to print a human nose implant in under 20 minutes. They believe that any cartilage implant could be produced with their new process. Speaking to ETH Zurich, researcher Matti Kesti described the technology:

‘A serious car accident results in a passenger’s nose being shattered. It is possible to reconstruct this as a 3D model on the computer. At the same time, a biopsy is performed on the patient and cartilage cells removed from his or her own body, for example from the knee, finger, ear or splinters of the shattered nose. The cells are spawned in the laboratory and mixed with a biopolymer. From this toothpaste-like suspension, a nose cartilage transplant is created using the bioprinter, which is implanted in the patient during surgery. In this process, the biopolymer is used merely as a form of shaping mould; it is subsequently broken down by the body’s own cartilage cells. After a couple of months, it is impossible to distinguish between the transplant and the body’s own nose cartilage.’

As the implant was grown from the body’s own cells, the risk of rejection is far lower than for an implant made of, say, silicone. An added benefit is that the cellular implant grows together with the patient, because it is controlled by the patient’s internal growth engine, as is the case for other body parts. This is particularly important for younger implant recipients.

In another breakthrough, researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy in Sweden have used 3D bioprinting to create cartilage formed from stem cells. When examined under the microscope, experienced surgeons saw no difference between the created and the ‘real’ human cartilage, with both displaying Type II collagen and similar cell structures. This could help patients with osteoarthritis, where cartilage in the joints degenerates and breaks down.

So, it may just be hello new nose, and goodbye creaking knees—all thanks to printed cartilage.