Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Trending
    • Interview: Lewis Thompson, VP Sport
    • En Garde!
    • BUWRU Still on Top
    • Hidden Histories: With The Archaeology Society
    • Beabadoobee Concert Review: Welcome to Beatopia
    • Taylor Swift: Midnights Review – The Stories of 13 Sleepless Nights
    • Claire Concert Review: Claire Cottrill in Concert!
    • Is There Hope For Percy Jackson?
    Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Flickr
    Seren
    • News & Politics
      1. Local News
      2. UK News
      3. Uni News
      4. World News
      5. Politics
      6. Comment
      7. Business
      Featured

      SABB Election: The Full Result Breakdown

      By Emily ReadMarch 20, 20210
      Recent

      Redevelopment plans and the culture of Bangor

      October 28, 2022

      Immediate closure of Menai Bridge following reports of structural integrity issues

      October 28, 2022

      Racial abuse victim calls for harsher sentencing following nightclub assault

      October 28, 2022
    • Arts & Culture
      1. Books
      2. Games
      3. Film
      4. Music
      5. TV
      6. Creative Corner
      Featured

      Bangor alumni podcast earns Hollywood cameo & BBC features

      By Amelia SmithMarch 7, 20210
      Recent

      Beabadoobee Concert Review: Welcome to Beatopia

      October 29, 2022

      Taylor Swift: Midnights Review – The Stories of 13 Sleepless Nights

      October 29, 2022

      Claire Concert Review: Claire Cottrill in Concert!

      October 29, 2022
    • Lifestyle
      1. Fashion
      2. Food and Drink
      3. Social
      4. Health and Beauty
      5. Travel
      Featured

      Country Highlight: The Netherlands

      By Emily ShoultsMay 6, 20220
      Recent

      Gilmore Garms

      October 28, 2022

      Fleeces and Funk

      October 28, 2022

      Cheerleading: Getting your kit together

      October 28, 2022
    • Discovery
      1. Science
      2. Environment
      3. History
      4. International
      Featured

      Brewing up a Storm: The History of Guinness

      By Emily ReadMarch 20, 20210
      Recent

      North Wales Ramblings

      October 28, 2022

      Hamza Yassin: The Hard Work That Is Making Luck Happen

      October 28, 2022

      Student’s Union Hosts Repair Cafe for Sustainability Awareness Week

      October 28, 2022
    • Sport
      1. Varsity 2019
      2. Varsity 2018
      3. Varsity 2017
      4. Varsity 2016
      5. Varsity 2015
      6. Varsity 2014
      7. Varsity 2013
        • Varsity 2013 Results
        • Varsity 2013 – In tweets
      Featured

      Bangor Muddogs’ American Football: a young woman finding her place

      By Jade HillMarch 23, 20210
      Recent

      Interview: Lewis Thompson, VP Sport

      October 29, 2022

      En Garde!

      October 29, 2022

      BUWRU Still on Top

      October 29, 2022
    • Students’ Union
      1. Union News
      2. Societies
      3. Volunteering
      4. Clubs
      Featured

      INTERVIEW: Be Period Positive

      By Caroline CartmillMarch 17, 20210
      Recent

      Interview: Lewis Thompson, VP Sport

      October 29, 2022

      En Garde!

      October 29, 2022

      BUWRU Still on Top

      October 29, 2022
    • Issues
      • Current Issue
      • This year’s issues
      • Last year’s issues
      • Seren Archive
      • Seren Teams
    Seren
    Home»Discovery»Science»3D Printing a Heart
    Science

    3D Printing a Heart

    Luke BarrettBy Luke BarrettDecember 11, 2013Updated:November 11, 2014No Comments2 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    Scientists now believe that within a decade they will be able to 3D print a human heart. To be able to construct a new organ seems incredibly complex; however Stuart Williams (executive and scientific director of the Cardiovascular Innovation Institute in Louisville) states that the heart is likely to be the easiest of all organs to reproduce as it is essentially just a pump with tubes. The goal is not just to 3D print hearts, but to be able to do so in less than three hours! Fat cells are the intended material to use in the construction and with just 50 CCs (roughly two golf balls worth) they should be able to construct a heart.

    Some of the more delicate parts of the heart, such as the valves and blood vessels, would need to be constructed separately and then “glued” to the rest of the structure, using biologically safe glue! The aim of printing organs is to maximise the number of patients receiving them.

    The most difficult part of 3D printing organs is trying to keep them alive; after printing is complete, the organs take time to grow and mature before they can be utilised. 3D printers can only produce items approximately a few millimetres wide, however the heart has a network of capillaries and the smallest of those is but a few microns thick (that is a 1000th of a millimetre) and they are vital for the survival of the organ.

    The other major issue, as is usual in scientific development, is money. 3D printing is expensive and a considerable amount of additional funding is needed to see this research to its end.

    The foundations of this project are solid but there still needs to be rapid progress in the printing of more complex tissues and in creating enough cells to be able to print organs and then to allow them to mature. Kevin Shakesheff, director of the Wolfson Centre for Stem Cells issue Engineering and Modelling and the UK Regenerative Medicine Platform Hub in Acellular Technologies, stated that there is a great interest in supporting this scientific advance as it is well understood that the technology would lead to new discoveries and additional therapies.

    So within 10 years we should see the appearance of 3D printed organs in use in hospitals around the world!

    3D Heart issue236 Kevin Shakesheff Science Stuart Williams
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Luke Barrett

    Related Posts

    Japan plan to release radioactive water into the ocean

    May 6, 2021

    The link between the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clots

    April 29, 2021

    How 3D printing can revolutionise medicine

    April 15, 2021

    Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    MORE INFORMATION
    • ABOUT
    • ADVERTISE
    • CONTACT US
    • GET INVOLVED
    • MEMBERS
    Links
    • Bangor University Bangor University
    • Google+ Google+
    • Undeb Bangor Undeb Bangor
    About

    Seren is Bangor University Students’ Union’s English Language Newspaper

    We have editorial independence from both Bangor University and Bangor Students’ Union. Seren is written by students for students and we’d love you to get involved!

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.