The unthinkable has happened. Researchers have managed to develop a 3D printer that is capable of bioprinting tissues to be used in transplants. These transplants can include muscle, bone, cartilage and even an entire human ear, which is precisely what the team has achieved.

The study has been published by researchers at Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine and has provided modern medicine with a 3D printer called the integrated tissue-organ printer (ITOP). It is the first of its kind printer capable of printing human-scale tissue constructs.

Even though the technology has still not been tested on humans, the team has tried it with lab rats where 3D printed [...]