The 3-D bioprinting process – of a heart, for example – begins with MR creating a detailed three-dimensional image of a patient’s heart. Computer software uses this image to construct a digital model of a new heart for the patient, featuring the original shape and size. After safely extracting cells from the patient through a blood sample, those blood cells are reprogrammed and converted into specialized heart cells, leveraging recent stem cell developments. Then, a “bio-ink” is created using the specialized heart cells, nutrients, and other materials that will help the cells survive the bioprinting process.

As you can imagine, the bioprinting is done with a 3-D bioprinter, using the dimensions from the MR. After printing, the heart is matured in a bioreactor, made stronger and readied for transplant. This process also eliminates the chance of organ rejection, since the transplantable organ is made of the recipient’s own cells, meaning it will be recognized as the patient’s own organ and not as foreign.


While only about 2,000 heart transplants occur in the U.S. each year, 2017 saw nearly 35,000 transplants of various organs, and only a little more than 16,000 donors. It seems that not only with hearts, but with organs as a whole, the transplant-ready supply is well short of the demand. The good news is that the 3-D bioprinting process has the potential to create a wealth of organs in addition to hearts, and thus the potential to save even more lives. The more the technology matures, the more types of organs it will be able to print, and the more lives it will be able to save.

The ability to create transplantable organs represents tremendous opportunities in medicine, from both financial and humanitarian standpoints. We’ve outlined the market opportunity of the 3-D printing industry as a whole, and 3-D bioprinting is surely a significant portion of that projection. Market opportunities are always great, but what’s really exciting is that the number of lives we can save is only limited by the organs we can produce. With hundreds of thousands of people dying annually because of the shortfall of available organs, this is not just an opportunity, but a responsibility.

About the Author: Steven Morris is the CEO of BIOLIFE4D, a pioneering biotech company laser-focused on leveraging advances in life sciences and tissue engineering to 3-D bioprint a viable human heart suitable for transplant.
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