Woman gets 3D ear made of her own living cells
WASHINGTON: A 20-year-old woman who was born with a small and misshapen right ear has received a 3-D printed ear implant made from her own cells, the manufacturer announced on Thursday. Independent experts said that the transplant, part of the first clinical trial of a successful medical application of this technology, was a stunning advance in the field of tissue engineering.
AuriNovo, as the implant is called, was developed by the company 3DBio Therapeutics while the surgery was led by Arturo Bonilla, founder and director of the Microtia-Congenital Ear Deformity Institute in San Antonio, Texas. The new ear was printed in a shape that precisely matched the woman’s left ear, according to 3DBio Therapeutics. This new ear, transplanted in March, will continue to regenerate cartilage tissue, giving it the look and feel of a natural ear, the company said.
“As a physician who has treated thousands of children with microtia from across the country and around the world, I am inspired by what this technology may mean for microtia patients and their families,” Bonilla said in a statement.
The clinical trial, which includes 11 patients, is still ongoing, and it’s possible that the transplants could fail or bring unanticipated health complications. But since the cells originated from the patient’s own
tissue, the new ear is not likely to be rejected by the body, doctors and company officials said.
3DBio’s success is one of several recent breakthroughs in the quest to improve organ and tissue transplants.
In January, surgeons in Maryland transplanted a genetically modified pig’s heart into a 57-year-old man with heart disease, extending his life by two months. Scientists are developing techniques to extend the life of donor organs so they do not go to waste.
The 3-D printing manufacturing process creates a solid, three-dimensional object from a digital model.
The technology generally involves a computer-controlled printer depositing material in thin layers to create the precise shape of the object.
The new ear implant from 3DBio Therapeutics integrates proprietary technologies, executives said, beginning with a method for turning a small sample of a patient’s cells into billions of cells. The company’s 3-D printer uses a collagenbased “bio ink” that is safe and keeps all of the materials sterile.