Feb 13, 2017 | By Tess
Nano Dimension, the Israeli company best known for its 3D printed PCB 3D printer and conductive inks, has announced that it is preparing to launch a subsidiary focused primarily on 3D bioprinting. The new company, which will establish a platform for 3D bioprinting cells and tissues, will be focusing primarily on 3D bioprinted human kidney structures as a potential treatment for end stage renal disease (ESRD), which causes kidney failure.
While you may be surprised to hear that the 3D printed PCB company is jumping into the field of bioprinting, Nano Dimension says its high-end 3D printing technology, along with its experience in nano-chemistry and advanced materials, will provide it with a foundational value for 3D bioprinting.
Amit Dror, CEO of Nano Dimension, stated: “We look forward to bringing our know how and IP in multi-material 3D printing, and integrating it into the emerging world of 3D bioprinting. We believe that a bioprinting platform with these advantages has the potential to enable the creation of very complex biological structures."
In fact, this is not the company’s first venture into 3D bioprinting technology. In May of last year, Nano Dimension partnered with Israeli biotech firm Accellta Ltd. to develop a high-speed 3D bioprinter for stem cells. Now, however, it seems as though Nano Dimension is ready to take its own 3D bioprinting technology to the next level.
ESRD, the last stage of chronic kidney disease, requires patients to be treated with either dialysis or a kidney transplant in order to survive. Within the U.S., medicare fees for ESRD services have reportedly risen to reach $32.8 billion (according to the United States Renal Data System), and the wait list for kidney transplants is continually growing. Currently, the list contains roughly 98,000 candidates who are waiting for transplants, a number five times bigger than the number of available kidney donors. To put it into perspective, only 19,000 kidney transplants were completed last year.
One of the aims of 3D bioprinting, as we know, is to offer alternatives to human organ donors through the development of artificial but biocompatible 3D printed organs and tissues. Of course, as the technology currently stands, there is still quite a long way to go before a patient will be implanted with a bioprinted organ. Nano Dimension thinks it is up to the task, and is hopeful that it can overcome certain challenges that still exist with 3D bioprinting.
The company, which already demonstrated a successful proof of concept by 3D bioprinting a tissue structure out of stem cells (in partnership with Accellta Ltd.), is currently awaiting approval for a patent application it has submitted for its 3D bioprinting technology. In terms of funding, the company’s new bioprinting subsidiary will reportedly obtain separate funding from the company’s 3D printed electronics department.
More details surrounding the new Nano Dimension subsidiary are expected to follow soon.
Posted in 3D Printer Company
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