MIT | MIT engineers have devised a 3-D printing technique that uses a new kind of ink made from genetically programmed living cells.
The cells are engineered to light up in response to a variety of
stimuli. When mixed with a slurry of hydrogel and nutrients, the cells
can be printed, layer by layer, to form three-dimensional, interactive
structures and devices.
The team has then demonstrated its technique by printing a “living
tattoo” — a thin, transparent patch patterned with live bacteria cells
in the shape of a tree. Each branch of the tree is lined with cells
sensitive to a different chemical or molecular compound. When the patch
is adhered to skin that has been exposed to the same compounds,
corresponding regions of the tree light up in response.
The researchers, led by Xuanhe Zhao, the Noyce Career Development
Professor in MIT’s Department of Mechanical Engineering, and Timothy Lu,
associate professor of biological engineering and of electrical
engineering and computer science, say that their technique can be used
to fabricate “active” materials for wearable sensors and interactive
displays. Such materials can be patterned with live cells engineered to
sense environmental chemicals and pollutants as well as changes in pH
and temperature.
What’s more, the team developed a model to predict the interactions
between cells within a given 3-D-printed structure, under a variety of
conditions. The team says researchers can use the model as a guide in
designing responsive living materials.
Zhao, Lu, and their colleagues have published their results today in the journal Advanced Materials.
The paper’s co-authors are graduate students Xinyue Liu, Hyunwoo Yuk,
Shaoting Lin, German Alberto Parada, Tzu-Chieh Tang, Eléonore Tham, and
postdoc Cesar de la Fuente-Nunez.
