3D printing takes step forward in creating human skin

3D printing, capable of producing heart models, concreate buildings and prosthetics, is still rapidly advancing. Researchers have developed 3D-printing technology capable of creating human-like skin.

Published in Biofabrication, the study showed the skin "can be transplanted to patients or used in business settings to test chemical products, cosmetics or pharmaceutical products in quantities and with timetables and prices that are compatible with these uses,” according to José Luis Jorcano, professor in UC3M's department of Bioengineering and Aerospace Engineering and head of the Mixed Unit CIEMAT/UC3M in Biomedical Engineering.

The human skin, a production of bioprinting, includes every layer from the natural structure of skin. From the epidermis to the dermis, the skin was made with bioinks and printed from a computer that builds the skin on a print bed. The process for making the tissue can be done two ways: allogeneric skin from a stock of cells for larger scale projects and autologous skin made from the patient’s own skin cells to treat severe burns.

"This method of bioprinting allows skin to be generated in a standardized, automated way, and the process is less expensive than manual production," said Alfredo Brisac, CEO of BioDan Group, a Spanish bioengineering firm specializing in regenerative medicine.

While it is still being approved by European regulatory agencies, the skin has potential to be used in transplants of burn patients and those with skin conditions as well as being used to test pharmaceutical products, cosmetics and chemical products and eliminating the need for the testing on animals.