Researchers in Canada have developed a low cost bio-ink that could be used to make artificial organs.
The team from the University of British Colombia (UBC) Okanagan campus has discovered that hydrogel produced from ‘cold-soluble gelatin (gelatin which dissolves without heat)’ is a stand-out material for 3D organ printing.
“We hope this new bio-ink will help researchers create improved artificial organs and lead to the development of better drugs, tissue engineering and regenerative therapies. The next step is to investigate whether or not cold-soluble gelatin methacrylate (GelMA-based) tissue scaffolds are can be used long-term both in the laboratory and in real-world transplants,” said Keekyoung Kim, an assistant professor at UBC Okanagan’s School of Engineering.
Cold-soluble gelatin is cheap to source and used mainly in culinary applications.
