3D-printed 'bionic' ear melds electronics and biology | KurzweilAI - 1 views
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Thierry Marcou on 13 May 13"Standard tissue engineering involves seeding types of cells, such as those that form ear cartilage, onto a scaffold of a polymer material called a hydrogel. But the researchers said that this technique has problems replicating complicated three-dimensional biological structures. Ear reconstruction "remains one of the most difficult problems in the field of plastic and reconstructive surgery," they wrote. To solve the problem, the team turned to 3D printing, its first use to interweave tissue with electronics, the researchers say. The technique allowed them to combine the antenna electronics with tissue within the highly complex topology of a human ear. (Top) Optical images of the functional materials, including biological (chondrocyte cells), structural (silicone), and electronic (AgNP-infused silicone) used to form the bionic ear. (Bottom) 3D printer used for the printing process. (Credit: Manu S Mannoor et al./Nano Letters) The researchers used a Fab@Home 3D printer to combine a matrix of hydrogel and calf cells with silver nanoparticles, which form an antenna. The printed bioelectronic hybrid ear construct was then cultured in vitro to enable cartilage to grow" Support for the project was provided by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, NIH, and the Grand Challenges Program at Princeton University.