Although attempts at successfully printing brain tissue have been futile, a team of researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison) just developed the first 3D-printed brain tissue capable of growing and functioning like normal brain tissue. This achievement will have crucial implications for scientists studying brain functions and working on treatments for neurological and neurodevelopmental disorders.
What did they do?
This group succeeded by diverging from traditional 3D-printing methods; rather than stacking layers vertically, the researchers stacked horizontally. The printed structure was strong enough to hold itself and soft enough to allow neurons to grow and talk to each other. The cells speaking to each other is critical because it provides evidence proving the functionality of this 3D-printing method. These cells laid next to each other like pencils on a desk, form connections across layers comparable to the networks in human brains. These networks allow neurons to communicate, send signals, interact through neurotransmitters, and form networks with support cells (also printed in the tissue). This technique was precise and allowed for printing different cells from different brain parts to communicate with each other. Likewise, the specificity of the printing process allows for flexibility; the 3D-printed tissue can be used to look at signaling between cells in Down Syndrome, interactions between healthy and neighboring tissue affected by Alzheimer’s, and testing new medicines.
What does this mean? Why does it matter?
This finding is significant. Professor of neuroscience and neurology at UW-Madison’s Waisman Center, Su-Chu Zhang, highlights this by stating, “This could be a hugely powerful model to help us understand how brain cells and parts of the brain communicate in humans…It could change the way we look at stem cell biology, neuroscience, and the pathogenesis of many neurological and psychiatric disorders.” Furthermore, Zhang adds, “Our brain tissue could be used to study almost every major aspect of what many people at the Waisman Center are working on. It can be used to look at the molecular mechanisms underlying brain development, human development, developmental disabilities, neurodegenerative disorders, and more,” meaning that the artificial tissue also has implications in teaching about the brain. Finally, Zhang notes that the new printing strategy is accessible to many labs since it can be performed on a commercialized printer, and the printed tissue can be examined with microscopes and standard imaging materials.
Works Cited
University of Wisconsin-Madison. (2024, February 1). Researchers 3D-print functional human brain tissue. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 2, 2024 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/02/240201212823.htm
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