<p>US scientists have successfully built functional heart parts out of collagen using a 3D bioprinter, a breakthrough they say could one day create entire organs.</p>.<p>Their technique, which was described in the journal Science on Thursday, replicates the body's own complex biological scaffolds that provide the structure and biochemical signalling organs need to function.</p>.<p>"What we were able to show was you can actually 3D print a heart valve out of collagen, and they function," Adam Feinberg, one of the paper's co-authors told AFP.</p>.<p>Previous attempts at printing these scaffolds, known as extracellular matrices, had been hindered by limitations that resulted in poor tissue fidelity and low resolutions.</p>.<p>Collagen, which is an ideal biomaterial for the task since it is found in every tissue of the human body, starts out as fluid and attempting to print it resulted in a puddle of jello-like material.</p>.<p>But the scientists at Carnegie Mellon University were able to overcome these hurdles by using rapid changes in pH to cause the collagen to solidify with precise control.</p>.<p>"That's the very first version of a valve, and so anything that we engineer as a product will actually get better and better," Feinberg said.</p>.<p>The technique could one day help patients awaiting heart transplants, but it will need to validate through animal testing and eventually human.</p>.<p>"I think more near term is probably patching an existing organ," such as a heart that has suffered a loss of function through a heart attack, or a degrading liver, said Feinberg.</p>
<p>US scientists have successfully built functional heart parts out of collagen using a 3D bioprinter, a breakthrough they say could one day create entire organs.</p>.<p>Their technique, which was described in the journal Science on Thursday, replicates the body's own complex biological scaffolds that provide the structure and biochemical signalling organs need to function.</p>.<p>"What we were able to show was you can actually 3D print a heart valve out of collagen, and they function," Adam Feinberg, one of the paper's co-authors told AFP.</p>.<p>Previous attempts at printing these scaffolds, known as extracellular matrices, had been hindered by limitations that resulted in poor tissue fidelity and low resolutions.</p>.<p>Collagen, which is an ideal biomaterial for the task since it is found in every tissue of the human body, starts out as fluid and attempting to print it resulted in a puddle of jello-like material.</p>.<p>But the scientists at Carnegie Mellon University were able to overcome these hurdles by using rapid changes in pH to cause the collagen to solidify with precise control.</p>.<p>"That's the very first version of a valve, and so anything that we engineer as a product will actually get better and better," Feinberg said.</p>.<p>The technique could one day help patients awaiting heart transplants, but it will need to validate through animal testing and eventually human.</p>.<p>"I think more near term is probably patching an existing organ," such as a heart that has suffered a loss of function through a heart attack, or a degrading liver, said Feinberg.</p>