For the first time, American researchers have managed to print solid hydrogel elements directly inside the human body. This new revolutionary technique opens the way to new medical applications, such as the creation of artificial tissues or organs but also the treatment of diseases and lesions, directly in the body.

It is a team of researchers led by Professor Wei Gao of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) who succeeded in this feat. This is a really fascinating advance in terms of 3D printing, applied to biological processes through the use of sound waves.

The method, called Deep Tissue in Vivo Sound Printing (DISP), which could be translated as “in vivo sound impression of deep tissues”, uses liposomes, tiny vesicles formed of lipids containing an active substance. They are injected into the body with a prepolymer solution. The application of ultrasound has the consequence of locally heating the targeted area of approximately 5 degrees, which causes the release of the retication agent who solidifies everything.

This technique allows in theory to create personalized structures in solid hydrogel inside the body. The idea is to be able to print complex and functional structures inside the body, such as medical devices or repairing cells, which can be used for regeneration treatments or to replace damaged tissues. Ultimately, it could participate in biological monitoring of internal vital signs, and even help the treatment of cancer. The next step, even more ambitious, will be to use artificial intelligence to improve the precision of printing in moving organs, like a beating heart!