Three-dimensional tissue constructs built by bioprinting.

Bioprinting is an evolving tissue engineering technology. It utilizes computer controlled three-dimensional printers for rapid and high-precision construction of three-dimensional biological structures. We employed discrete and continuous bioprinting to build three-dimensional tissue constructs. In the former case bioink particles - spherical cell aggregates composed of many thousands of cells - are delivered one by one into biocompatible scaffolds, the biopaper. Structure formation takes place by the subsequent fusion of the bioink particles due to their liquid-like and self-assembly properties. In the latter case a mixture of cells and scaffold material is extruded from the biocartridge akin to toothpaste to arrive at the desired construct. Specifically, we built rectangular tissue blocks of several hundred microns in thickness as well as tubular structures of several millimeters in height.

–Jakab K, Damon B, Neagu A, Kachurin A, Forgacs G. Department of Physics, University of Missouri

The above is from the abstract but it’s looking less abstract and more concrete all the time. That’s getting pretty SF and I don’t mean San Francisco.

I’m wondering if they can make me an extra bladder for those really long meetings.