A unique space experiment on 4D bioprinting, performed by Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko, has been completed on the ISS. The printer itself was in orbit, and the consumables for the work—in particular, plates with a shape memory effect and a layer of cells in special cuvettes—were recently delivered on the Soyuz MS-25 with other scientific equipment.
A method for obtaining bioengineered structures from a combination of synthetic materials with shape memory and biological components using magnetic fabrication by 4D bioprinting will be developed. Special cuvettes with a synthetic plate covered with cellular material and possessing a shape memory effect were placed in the bioprinter. Under certain influences during the experiment, they transformed into a tubular structure.
Scientists believe that such four-dimensional biofabrication will allow obtaining equivalents of tubular organs: for example, blood vessels, ureters, and the urethra.
There are currently only four space magnetic bioprinters in the world, and they are all Russian—one on the ISS, one in the Museum of Cosmonautics at VDNH, and two at NUST MISIS.
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