Researchers are making heart cells from stem cells using 3-D printing

All humans start from one cell which then divides to eventually form the embryo. Depending on the signals sent by their adjacent cells, these divided cells are then developed or differentiated into specific tissue or organs.

In regenerative medicine, controlling that differentiation in the lab is crucial because stem cells can be differentiated to allow the growth of organs in vitro and replace damaged adult cells, especially those with very limited replication capacity. , as the brain as the heart.

One common approach scientists take when distinguishing stem cells is with chemical stimulants. Although this method is very efficient to make one type of cell, it lacks the ability to reproduce the complexity of living organisms, where different cell types coexist and work together to form an organ.

Alternatively, inspired by the natural process of cell development, another method involves packing stem cells into small cellular aggregates, called spheres called embryoid bodies. Similar to real embryos, cell-cell interaction in embryonic bodies is the main driver of differentiation. From the production of these embryoid bodies it was found that parameters such as cell numbers, size, and sphericity of the embryonic body influence the types of cells that are produced.

Since scientists were unable to control that parameter, they had to courageously produce a large number of embryoid bodies and select specific selections with appropriate characteristics to study.

To address this challenge, researchers from the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) turned to additive manufacturing to control stem cell differentiation in embryonic bodies. Their research study was published in Bioprinting.

Adopting a multidisciplinary approach by combining the research domains of 3-D manufacturing and life sciences, Ph.D. student Rupambika Das and assistant professor Javier G. Fernandez 3-D print various micro-scaled physical devices with finely tuned geometries. They used the devices to demonstrate unusual precision in the direct differentiation of stem cells by the formation of embryoid bodies (refer to image). In their study, they successfully regulated the parameters for improving the production of cardiomyocytes, cells found in the heart.

“The field of additive manufacturing is changing at an unusual pace. We are seeing levels of precision, speed and cost that were unimaginable a few years ago. What we have shown is that 3-D printing has now reached the point of geometric “and where we can control the outcome of stem cell differentiation. And in doing so, we support regenerative medicine to go further in addition to the accelerating rate of the additive industry,” said SUTD’s chief research assistant professor Javier G. Fernandez.

“The use of 3-D printing in biology is strongly focused on printing artificial tissues using cell-loaded cells, to build artificial organs ‘piece by piece’. Now, we have shown that 3-D printing it has potential for it to be used in a bio-inspired approach in which we can control cells to grow in a lab just as they grow in vivo, ”added first author Rupambika Das, Ph.D. student of SUTD.