Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Scientists Create 3D Bioprinter Capable of Printing Living Human Skin (ibtimes.co.uk)

Posted by BeauHD on from the epic-dermis dept.

New submitter drunkdrone quotes a report from International Business Times: Spanish scientists say they have developed a prototype 3D printer that is capable of printing "functional" human skin that can be used for transplant patients, as well as an ethical alternative to animal testing. The so-called bioprinter uses special "ink" consisting of human cells and other biological components to reproduce the natural structure of the skin, including the external epidermis and the deeper dermis layer. These "bio inks" are deposited from special injectors onto a print bed to produce skin that is bioactive and capable of producing its own human collagen, the researchers claim. This means that the 3D-printed skin is, in essence, living tissue, making it suitable for treating burn patients and for testing cosmetic, chemical and pharmaceutical products. According to UC3M, the technology could be used to print other human tissues, although first it needs to be approved by regulators in order to ensure the skin it produces is fit for use on human patients.

54 comments

  1. It's been done before by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Does anyone remember the movie Darkman?

    1. Re:It's been done before by LemonFire · · Score: 2

      This is exactly what we need for our T-800 project.
      We'd also be interested in a phased plasma rifle in the 40-watt range.

      - Pain can be controlled - you just disconnect it

    2. Re:It's been done before by fyngyrz · · Score: 1

      Just what ya see, pal.

      --
      I've fallen off your lawn, and I can't get up.
    3. Re:It's been done before by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Is everything on display in the clearnce sale?

    4. Re: It's been done before by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Uzi 9mm?

    5. Re:It's been done before by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The first Terminator was by far the best of the series.

    6. Re: It's been done before by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      The sand n1ggerman. And The indo-chimp. Both being printed into michael jackson.

    7. Re:It's been done before by Applehu+Akbar · · Score: 1

      Nobody expects the Spanish skin printer!

    8. Re:It's been done before by LifesABeach · · Score: 1

      maybe the *.stl file could be submitted to Instructables.com? How big was the printer bed size?

    9. Re:It's been done before by interkin3tic · · Score: 1

      They print a whole Milla Jovovoovovich (aside from a hand) in 5th element.

      More importantly, it's been done before in real life. There's a "skin gun" that can basically "bioprint" skin right on a patient . And biologists have been growing skin in vitro for a while now.

      From what I can tell, the only thing special about the current thing is they seem to be the first to use the "bioprint" buzzword in connection with skin. That's likely more due to earlier researchers going for the more lucrative fields, like trying to print a liver. You can get a skin graft if you need more skin, or take it from cadavers. If you need to test your new makeup on skin, there's animals or the keratinocyte cultures I linked to earlier. Livers on the other hand are harder to come by so printing those would be more lucrative.

      I'm sure there's still a lot of money to be had in printing skin, just as there's evidently a lot of money in yet another picture sharing social media service, but this skin printing thing is not a technological breakthrough, it's a biology form of Instagram.

    10. Re:It's been done before by boristdog · · Score: 1

      Hey, I'm just glad I'll finally have a plausible story to tell the cops about the human-skin drum in my living room.
      And the curtains. They always ask about those.

  2. Westworld by KevinWood9139 · · Score: 1

    Here come the human looking robots.

    1. Re:Westworld by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      When this place started, I opened one of you up once, a million little perfect pieces. And then they changed you, made you this sad, little real mess, flesh and bone, just like us.

    2. Re:Westworld by tchdab1 · · Score: 1

      Before the robots are developed, we can use this to print our own tattoos at home.
      Bye-bye ink shops - another skilled job lost to automation.

  3. So we were right after all by Provocateur · · Score: 0

    Mark these two events:
    Print human skin

    Google allows us to address echo as computer

    Do the following words sound familiar to you: "hooked into everything" "outside is human tissue, but underneath it is a hyper alloy combat chassis"

    "You can't bargain with it; you can't reason with it"

    Now do you remember??

    So if that guy next to you reeks of sweat and bad breath, he may appear to be a homeless person, at first. Until he asks you what day it is; what year this is. Check his reaction when you answer him with, Relax, it is the year of the rooster! Then run

    --
    WARNING: Smartphones have side effects--most of them undocumented.
  4. Can't wait for the pocket pussy edition by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Then I can divorce my wife :)

    1. Re: Can't wait for the pocket pussy edition by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If that's all your wife is to you now, please do her a favor and divorce her now. Unbelievable you would joke about dehumanizing a person, especially one you're married to, into a sex toy.

    2. Re: Can't wait for the pocket pussy edition by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      And you're dehumanizing him by thinking that's all he sees based on a joke.

      There's nothing more human than pursuing sex. We're animals, that's why there's 7 billion of us cockroaches already here.

    3. Re: Can't wait for the pocket pussy edition by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Katie darling, is that you? I didn't think you were the /. type!

    4. Re: Can't wait for the pocket pussy edition by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Maybe she only married him for his money, and as such divorcing her would not be doing her a favor?

      If she is dependent on him, then staying married longer could lead to a larger take for her when they get divorced. In such a case, staying married to her even though she is just a vagina to him, is doing her a favor.

    5. Re:Can't wait for the pocket pussy edition by Applehu+Akbar · · Score: 0

      And somebody on Stormfront is sure to download the lampshade design from Thingiverse.

  5. H-1B INDO-CHIMP STREET SHITTERS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    Are taking your American IT jobs.

    Wake the fuck up, SJW Beta Cuck! You are getting ASS REAMED by every third world street shitter that got a C+ in C++.

    Make America Great Again, and God Bless President Trump.

    8===D~~ ~

    1. Re:H-1B INDO-CHIMP STREET SHITTERS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      T - 3 months. The approximate time before my H-1B arrives :D

      Maybe it's because of your "liberal" schools that you need us. University degrees in smoking pot, playing games, and ass reaming just don't cut it in the modern economy.

    2. Re:H-1B INDO-CHIMP STREET SHITTERS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So what will you be doing on your H1B? Game dev? Porn devop? QA testing those porn games in the popup ads? Oh right. You'll be coding popup ads.

    3. Re:H-1B INDO-CHIMP STREET SHITTERS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      you see, an american is not willing to bring me my coffee for minimum wage. americans don't work as busboys. it's not because our schools don't teach you how to be a busboy. it's because a busboy is commodity busywork we don't want to do. a mexican construction worker gets paid minimum wage. an american one makes over 100k/year. the fact that mexicans are willing to do the same job as an american for half the price does not mean the americans can't do it. it means they don't want to, because it's become a shit job.

      and don't even try to compare average indian quality of work or education to what we have in america. there's a very negative stereotype about your people being uneducated stupid idiots with shitty work quality. the only reason you get the same job done as an american is because you spend twice the time doing it. that stereotype became a stereotype as you indonigs started stinking up the office here. learn to use toilet paper first and pronounce words correctly.

      when you make jokes about american education being worse than that shithole you're from - we laugh. hint: we're not laughing with you. we're laughing at you - your lack of culture, your lack of education, your lack of manners, your language, the way you smell, and that fact that you'll always be indian - a substandard human. And no matter what you do, your offspring will always have a little of that curry skin color in them.

      Have I mentioned you're a fucking idiot? You're coming here to take someone's job for half their salary, and you're saying it's because they're poorly educated? No moron, it's because the guy can earn more than you so he'll get a different job, keeping his high salary that you dream of. Coding has become a low-skill unimportant monkey job, like bringing coffee.

  6. about time! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    I'm a black man born into a white man's body. I look forward to the day when I can become a fully cisblack male.

  7. But can it.. by Z80a · · Score: 1

    Print over a metallic exoskeleton?

  8. Oh goodie! by Z80a · · Score: 1

    Now all we need is to make it print directly over a metallic exoskeleton and it's all ready.

  9. Time for that human skin clothes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Skin tight t-shirts with various tattoos.
    Black or white overcoat, as needed regionally
    Skin tight body suit
    Skin upholstered chairs
    What about a skin pillowcase

    Just endless ideas that were once sick and now its all possible

    1. Re:Time for that human skin clothes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      You should read "Use of Weapons" by Iain M. Banks.

  10. Wake me up by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Wake me up when they make the liquid metal one from the second movie - I'll skip version one.

  11. Fleshlight XP by beckett · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I have a feeling David Cronenberg will be shifting from cult to mainstream in the future.

    Also, get ready for the next generation of fleshlights with feeding instructions.

    1. Re:Fleshlight XP by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Troll

      If living fleshlights aren't nourished by cum, you designed them wrong.

  12. HP human ink series by ITRambo · · Score: 5, Funny

    If anyone thinks HP ink is expensive wait for the human cell ink pricing., gonna cost ya.

    1. Re:HP human ink series by RuffMasterD · · Score: 4, Funny

      Probably going to cost an arm and a leg.

      --
      Human Rights, Article 12: Freedom from Interference with Privacy, Family, Home and Correspondence
    2. Re:HP human ink series by LiSrt · · Score: 1

      ...and it will refuse to print just one colour unless it's loaded with all colours.

    3. Re:HP human ink series by sysrammer · · Score: 1

      ...and it will refuse to print just one colour unless it's loaded with all colours.

      ...after all, we don't want a racist printer.

      --
      His ignorance covered the whole earth like a blanket, and there was hardly a hole in it anywhere. - Mark Twain
    4. Re:HP human ink series by Neuronwelder · · Score: 1

      THAT would definitely be interesting! Gold, Green, Blue, Fire engine red, etc.

    5. Re:HP human ink series by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      At least with this technology you can just print another.

  13. ya know? by Tablizer · · Score: 1

    tastes like plastic chicken

    --
    Table-ized A.I.
  14. Inferior Quality by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    While this technology had initially looked promising, the actual results fall quite short of expectations. There are numerous flaws with the product which do not make it a viable alternative, but the most egregious is the taste. Until this problem has been adequately addressed the only viable option is continuing to harvest it naturally.

  15. Skin as art by mnemotronic · · Score: 1

    Can the skin tone be modified? 3D printed tats? How about a zebra-stripe or checkerboard pattern? How about clear? What about rejection? Can I shave off my fingerprints and replace them with 3D printed ones?

    --
    The Russians have won. They have made the world a cesspool of distrust, greed, fear and hate.
    1. Re:Skin as art by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      You should read "Surface Detail" by Iain M. Banks.

    2. Re: Skin as art by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why is Ian Banks so obsessed with skin?

  16. Uncharacteristically cautious phrasing by sheramil · · Score: 5, Interesting
    "Spanish scientists say they have..." and not "Spanish scientists have"

    "The so-called bioprinter uses" ... so-called? What else would you call it?

    "... and capable of producing its own human collagen, the researchers claim."

    "According to UC3M, the technology could be used to..."

    This is a far cry from headlines that scream "SCIENTISTS ARE -", only to be followed by an article that says "Some scientists think that maybe one day soon -"

    1. Re:Uncharacteristically cautious phrasing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There are already videos of scientists using a "spray gun" to spray stem cells that turn into skin onto burn patients. I'd assume since I haven't seen anything that it was a fraud, that the tech behind that is already beyond what this does.

  17. Save the Bunnies! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Use this to test drugs and cosmetics instead of letting those uppity bunnies get all the perks.

  18. Blisters by Isendur · · Score: 1

    Living Human Skin sounds like a good theme for a horror.

  19. How soon until we are able to print animal fur? by Diac · · Score: 2

    I wonder if they will be able to print not only skin cells but hair follicles as well to be able to print custom animal fur. A cost effective fur printer could take over the industry and replace the old methods.

  20. Hmmmm... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Designer fingerprints anyone?

  21. ProLife having fits by trevc · · Score: 1, Interesting

    So what does the ProLife movement think about living skin? Can it be thrown in the trash? Oh my.

    1. Re:ProLife having fits by bazorg · · Score: 1

      Good question. I'll phone them next time I have a haircut :)

  22. Marzipam! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The BuffyBot gets ever closer to reality. Bigly!

  23. Topology people must hate this by Verdatum · · Score: 1

    Topologically speaking, a printer capable of making skin is a 2D printer, not a 3D printer.