China3D printingNet, July 28, after more than two decades of life-changing medical research for people who were disfigured by severe trauma and burns, the Scar Free Foundation, a British fundraising charity, announced a groundbreaking £2.5 million study The plan is to use bioprinting and the patient’s own cells.A three-year project at Swansea University in Wales can advance cartilage for facial reconstructionbiology3D printing, And at the same time analyze how facial scars affect mental health by analyzing data from the world’s largest population with such obvious differences.
Together with the Welsh government organization Health and Care Research Wales, Scar Free revealed that Swansea University’s new “Facial Reconstruction and Regeneration Research Program” will promote the development of 3D bioprinted facial cartilage using human cells and plant materials for future treatments People born in the UK and around the world without body parts or facial scars due to burns, trauma or cancer.
Cynthia de Courcey uses a 3D bioprinter for Swansea University Scarless Foundation research to advance the development of 3D bioprinted facial cartilage. Image courtesy of Adrian White Photography/Unscar Foundation.
According to Scar Free, scars affect more than 20 million people in the UK. In addition, the impact of severe scars on the body may require frequent surgeries, skin transplants and daily physical therapy, not to mention the psychological impact on patients and their families. Some of the most common causes of scars come from cancer surgery and burns. However, this is an area of medical research that is seriously underfunded.
Scar Free aims to change this situation by supporting research to reduce the physical and psychological burden of scars. For example, the foundation explained that patients who have lost ears or noses told researchers that existing plastic prostheses do not feel “part of them” and are more willing to use their own tissue for reconstruction. By creating a custom cartilage scaffold on which the patient’s own stem cells can grow, the surgeon will avoid the need to remove cartilage from other parts of the body (otherwise it will lead to painful surgery and further scars).
Unscarred Foundation infographic. Image courtesy of Unscar Foundation.
This pioneering project is led by Iain Whitaker, Director of Plastic Surgery at Swansea University School of Medicine and Head of Surgery for Welsh Health and Nursing Research. The project is based on preliminary research supported by the Royal College of Surgeons and funded by the Medical Research Council. Work Zita Jessop is now a senior lecturer in the Whitaker team. Her specific research called 3D BIO-FACE will enter the next stage, which includes scientific research to determine the ideal cell combination for growing new cartilage, and optimize nanocellulose bioprinting for 3D bioprinting of patient-specific cartilage structures Ink and proved that they are safe, non-toxic, and well tolerated by the immune system.
Whitaker’s laboratory is known as the Reconstructive Surgery and Regenerative Medicine Research Group (ReconRegen). It was established in 2012 and has now developed into the largest single-center reconstructive surgery research group in the UK. It has been using bioprinting technology for many years. This includes five years of groundbreaking research funded by the United Kingdom showing how nanocellulose is compatible with human cells, which can be used as supporting structures in bioprinting for 3D printing – and living cells can also survive the printing process. The goal of Whitaker and his team is to develop tissues that fit the anatomy of individual patients and that can survive long-term. Thanks to 3D bioprinting, this is becoming a reality.
By using human cartilage-specific stem progenitor cells and nanocellulose as bio-inks for facial reconstruction to develop 3D bioprinted facial cartilage, surgeons can create durable cartilage structures that can be safely and effectively used in human clinical trials. If successful, the results may completely change the reconstruction of patients affected by facial deformities and eliminate donor site scars and other complications.Whitaker emphasized that the successful translation of this research project will “change the future of surgery” because the scientific concepts and platform technologies they work on can be applied to tissue types such as blood vessels, nerves, bones, skin and fat, rather than just cartilage. . In the UK, the ability to successfully 3D print living tissue has been emphasized by the Royal College of Surgeons as one of the future of surgery. The British government has selected regenerative medicine as one of the “eight technologies” to promote future growth in the UK.
The Scarless Foundation of Swansea University is researching the use of Celllink technology and bio-inks to advance the development of 3D bioprinted facial cartilage. Image courtesy of Adrian White Photography/Unscar Foundation.
Personally, Scar Free’s chief ambassador, Simon Weston, is a British Army veteran who underwent years of reconstructive surgery after suffering life-threatening injuries during the Falkland War in 1982. Said that this research will have a major impact on him.“There was no research or ability to rebuild my ears at the time-I really had to watch them fall. This research also avoided the need for skin grafts from other parts of the body-the process itself can be very painful And will leave new scars,” said Weston, who later became a patron of several charities that support people with cancer. Disfigured and was appointed the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his courage and charitable work.
Simon Weston CBE, Chief Ambassador of the Unscarred Foundation. Image courtesy of Unscar Foundation.
Carrying out cutting-edge research to reconstruct defects in an unprecedented way may change the lives of patients. Bioprinting technology is the ideal tool for achieving the much-anticipated progress in facial reconstruction through human cells, but without any invasive procedures. Therefore, this advancement can limit the consequences of facial scars physically and emotionally, giving surgeons the revolutionary ability to use their own cells to reconstruct the face without further scarring.
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