Nanoengineers at the University of California, San Diego, led by NanoEngineering Professor Shaochen Chen, have developed a novel technology that can fabricate, in mere seconds, microscale three dimensional (3D) structures out of soft, biocompatible hydrogels, according to the university.
Near term, the technology could lead to better systems for growing and studying cells, including stem cells, in the laboratory. Long-term, the goal is to be able to print biological tissues for regenerative medicine. For example, in the future, doctors may repair the damage caused by heart attack by replacing it with tissue that rolled off of a printer.
Image courtesy of Biomedical Nanotechnology Laboratory, Chen Research Group, UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering.
