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Cleoclementine t1_jaal06r wrote

Imagine the possibilities if we got the the point where we could 3D print whole entire organs

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CletusDSpuckler t1_jaamskz wrote

Well, if the history of advances in home video are any guide ...

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Reddit-username_here t1_jab0neb wrote

Then we need the porn industry to innovate?

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Kindred87 t1_jabbvll wrote

Better than 3D printing, we've actually been growing functioning organs in vivo in the lab for a while. Here's a paper from 2012 where organogenesis of ectopic eyes was induced in the guts of tadpoles via bioelectric pattern modulation: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22159581/

Other experiments have also induced the growth of extra limbs, hearts, brains, etc. in developing frogs using the same bioelectric pathways.

That research developed to the point of regenerating entire limbs in adult frogs that lack regenerative capabilities, in 2022: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.abj2164

Current research is underway on mice, primarily in limb regeneration.

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snoqualmie_pass t1_jabgzk8 wrote

So what about growing the rest of a human body for those heads in cryo?

Can we bring Einstein back yet?

/half joking

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Kindred87 t1_jabhoag wrote

If we can revive the head and somehow provide it with life support, we can theoretically induce morphogenesis at the base of the neck to grow the rest of the body. I'm not sure if you could do it in one pass (i.e. build a body) or if you'd need to induce morphogenesis for each individual anatomical structure (torso, shoulder, heart, left lung, right lung, etc.).

Either way, the process would be insanely creepy because you'd essentially have a baby's body growing out of an old person's head. But it should be doable.

Einstein though isn't coming back. His bioelectric networks, genome, and all other biological information states are beyond recovery. If we had done a full genome sequencing on him and performed a full bioelectric pattern scan somehow, we could potentially have reverse-engineered him. The bioelectric piece would be necessary to create Einstein as he was in adulthood, versus as he was as a freshly fertilized oocyte which is all a genomic snapshot would grant you.

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snoqualmie_pass t1_jabjgk1 wrote

Wow that was totally amazing!

Naively I had thought that the body could be grown separately, using some samples from the head, then at some point, attached and reanimated. But I’m nearly clueless about this technology.

I’m a fan of the sci-fi series “The Expanse” and there’s a scene where someone who had lost their arm, was having a new one regrown. They actually showed a “baby’s arm” growing out of the stump. (They used a clear cylinder, filled with a liquid, to encapsulate it). Sounds like it was portrayed realistically.

Thank you for your fascinating comment!

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Kindred87 t1_jabl7hv wrote

That portrayal is somewhat accurate for in vivo regeneration. What basically happens is that some of the processes during embryogenesis would be retriggered, resulting in a regenerative event. Though there would be a fairly large difference in what it would look like.

In embryogenesis, the bioelectric patterns dictating morphological goals like "the left side of the head goes here" and "build cardiac nerves here" gradually shift as the organism develops. The goal isn't to build an adult from the get go, the goal is to build the next stage on the way to eventual adulthood. This results in a relatively complete body that becomes more complex and larger over time. This is also why morphological goals are stored in volatile bioelectric networks instead of stable formats like DNA. They need to be modified at will both by developmental events and by other cells that need to coordinate with their neighbors.

With artificially induced morphogenesis, particularly in an adult, the bioelectric patterns would be for a complete adult anatomical structure at the very start; no gradual development here. In the case of an arm, for instance, this would result in growth coming from the stump that would begin forming the adult fingers of the hand very early on. It would look somewhat like a tree as all the parts of the limb would generate concurrently towards the adult shape instead of interim shapes like those of a child or adolescent.

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Wandering-Zoroaster t1_jac34l6 wrote

“Potentially reengineering Albert Einstein” as a concept has made my day

Thank you kind human

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Salisen t1_jac96zw wrote

His brain is also in small sections and scattered all over various research institutions and museums.

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redlines4life t1_jabwztt wrote

If this ends up not benefiting humans I’m glad we got to save some frogs in the process :)

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tommygunz007 t1_jacwc4x wrote

The Israelis did print a heart. I don't think it beat, but they did print a 'whole heart'

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MidniteOwl t1_jadhwd5 wrote

Instead of harvesting real ones from mainland China.

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unswsydney OP t1_jaal6yf wrote

Hi r/science - researchers from our Medical Robotics Lab have developed a proof of concept of a tiny flexible 3D bioprinter that can be inserted into the body just like an endoscope and directly deliver multilayered biomaterials onto the surface of internal organs and tissues.

The team behind the concept say that with further development the technology could be used by medical professionals to access hard-to-reach areas inside the body via small skin incisions or natural orifices.

Their work has been published in Advance Science if you’d like to have a read: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/advs.202205656

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wotmate t1_jaci6ce wrote

Please tell me that the government is going to fund you directly so that you don't have to go to a multinational and sell your soul... Please...

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modilion t1_jaatdqw wrote

Just FYI, there is a video of a colonoscopy and a fake butt on the next page. Mildly NSFW in public.

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unswsydney OP t1_jaav17z wrote

Thank you! We tried to get that onto our original comment but it kept getting removed!

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drwiki0074 t1_jabgk1c wrote

It’s like The Fifth Element!

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bmaggot t1_jabtghu wrote

I need a few more hearts, lungs and livers in me. Black carapace maybe

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ubermeisters t1_jae8tsq wrote

x-posted to /r/AdditiveManufacturing

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Tarkcanis t1_jaev8zy wrote

Sometimes, you gotta look at a problem from down underneath to get a fresh perspective.

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tommygunz007 t1_jacw943 wrote

There was someone talking about inserting cells that make insulin.. I remember reading a few years back about it.

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Night_Chicken t1_jacizgl wrote

So now we can robotically place infections with great precision directly upon the target organ? Pancreatitis will never be the same.

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