Flexible Robot 3D Prints Living Cells Onto Internal Organs

(Credit: Dr. Do/UNSW/Advanced Science) It’s always satisfying to see newer technology enter the medical arena with the hope of improving people’s health, and 3D printing is no different. Scientists at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) Sydney have created a flexible robot that 3D prints organic material onto the surface of organs, presenting an exciting opportunity for less-invasive surgical methods in the future.

The prototype, called F3DB, primarily comprises a tiny, bendable arm. On one end of the arm is a swiveling three-axis nozzle that prints with “bioink,” or polymers used to create engineered live tissues. Hydraulics allow the arm to bend and twist, while operators can adjust the arm’s stiffness using different elastic tubes. Thanks to F3DB’s small size and flexibility, operators can insert it into the body like an endoscope to reach more confined areas with smaller incisions.

Regarding incisions, F3DB isn’t just for printing bioink (though that’s its primary purpose.) The robot’s nozzle can be used to cut flesh at the start of surgery and flush an area with water to clear away excess blood. For actual printing, F3DB’s nozzle can be operated manually or print from a programmed set of shapes.

(Credit: Dr. Do/UNSW)

According to a paper published in the journal Advanced Science, 3D bioprinting experiments involving F3DB have so far been successful. Connective tissue cells printed using F3DB remained intact throughout the printing process; afterward, the cells continued growing, with four times the number of cells observed at the one-week mark. The robot was tested inside an artificial colon and on the surface of a pig’s kidney.

“Existing 3D bioprinting techniques require biomaterials to be made outside the body, and implanting that into a person would usually require large open-field open surgery, which increases infection risks,” biomedical engineering lecturer and lead study author Dr. Thanh Nho Do told UNSW. “Our flexible 3D bioprinter means biomaterials can be directly delivered into the target tissue or organs with a minimally invasive approach.”

Now that Dr. Do and his team have received a provisional patent for F3DB, they’re working on testing it in vivo with living animals. They’re also working to add more features to the robot, like an integrated camera and a scanning system allowing operators to reconstruct relevant tissues in real time. The scientists hope their robot will someday be used to conduct endoscopies using a single all-in-one tool and conduct conventionally invasive surgeries with minimal impact on the patient.

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