Human tissue from a 3D printer
It sounds a bit like science fiction: Accident victims receive a replacement for their destroyed bones that is an exact fit for the damaged site. The material comes from a 3D printer and was built up there layer by layer using special biomaterials subsequently colonized by cells belonging to the patient. But it is not just bones; muscles, nerves, and skin can also be made by the printer to match each patient perfectly. Because the implant was constructed from the body’s own cells, the body does not reject it; the immune system does not have to be suppressed with drugs.
In actual fact, this scenario has been a reality for quite some time now – at least when it comes to healing damaged bone. But scientists are confident that in a few years they will be in a position to use 3D technology to help reconstruct breast tissue for women after breast cancer surgery, for example, or even to produce entire organs.
This coming winter semester, a new international Master’s degree program will start that will focus on precisely this area of research: BIOFAB or, to give it its full name, biofabrication Training for Future Manufacturing. The parties involved in this world-first offering are:
- Queensland University of Technology (Australia)
- University of Wollongong (Australia)
- University Medical Center Utrecht (The Netherlands)
- Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg (Germany)
The course will be supported financially by the European Union and the Australian Government.
The four universities involved will each admit ten students to the Master’s course. They will complete around half of their studies in Australia and around half in Europe. At the end, they will receive an international Master’s degree both in Australia and in Europe.
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