Machine under development at Melbourne uses “vibrating bubbles” for super-speed bioprinting

A new, locally-developed bioprinter has received positive feedback from institutes including the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and Harvard Medical School, according to University of Melbourne, and offers cancer researchers a new tool for replicating specific organs and tissues.

In a statement from the university on Friday, it was claimed that the new 3D printer is able to fabricate structures that behave like a range of tissue types in the human body – “from soft brain tissue to harder materials like cartilage and bone – and could therefore be a useful tool for drug testing and development.

Associate Professor David Collins, the Head of the Collins BioMicrosystems Laboratory at the University of Melbourne, said that the team’s technology “drastically” improved the speed and precision of bioprinting, and used a “sophisticated optical-based system” rather than a layer-by-layer approach.

“Incorrect cell positioning is a big reason most 3D bioprinters fail to produce structures that accurately represent human tissue,” said Collins.

“Current 3D bioprinters depend on cells aligning naturally without guidance, which presents significant limitations.

“Our system, on the other hand, uses acoustic waves generated by a vibrating bubble to position cells within 3D printed structures. This method provides the necessary head start for cells to develop into the complex tissues found in the human body.”

The university said their additive manufacturing technique “uses vibrating bubbles to 3D print cellular structures in just a matter of seconds, which is around 350 times faster than traditional methods” and could replicate human tissues “with cellular resolution.”

Lead author on the work Callum Vidler, a PhD student of biomedical engineering, said that medical researchers were excited by the invention and its ability to address the shortcomings of previous approaches to bioprinting.

“We’ve developed our technology to address this gap, offering significant advancements in speed, precision, and consistency. This creates a crucial bridge between lab research and clinical applications,” Vidler said.

“So far, we’ve engaged with around 60 researchers from institutions including the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Harvard Medical School, and the Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre, and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.”

Vidler’s work recently received a grant of $199,482 through the Australia’s Economic Accelerator (AEA) Seed pilot program. 

Picture: the bioprinter (credit University of Melbourne)

Further reading

Quantum amplifier, novel drone antenna among projects funded through $11 million AEA Seed round