Scientists print 3D object with stem cells

Stem cells. Photo: Getty Images/AFP

Scientists say they have printed 3D objects using human embryonic stem cells for the first time, furthering the quest to fabricate transplantable organs.

Once fine-tuned, the technology should allow scientists to make three-dimensional human tissue in the lab, eliminating the need for organ donation or testing on animals, they reported.

Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) can replicate indefinitely and become almost any type of cell in the human body.

They are touted as a source of replacement tissue, fixing nearly anything from malfunctioning hearts and lungs, to damaged spines, Parkinson's disease or even baldness.

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Scientists have previously tested 3D printing, which uses inkjet technology, with other types of cells, including adult stem cells.

But until now hESCs, which are more versatile than mature ones, have proven too fragile.

"This is a scientific development which we hope and believe will have immense valuable long-term implications for reliable, animal-free drug testing and in the longer term, to provide organs for transplant on demand," said Jason King from British stem cell company Roslin Cellab, which took part in the work.

The team used a specially-designed "valve-based" printer that deposited a "bio ink" of liquid containing laboratory-cultivated hESCs.

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Scientists print 3D object with stem cells