3D Printing Versus Bioprinting on Polymers
Introduction
3D printing is an emerging and growing technology with specific manufacturing that enables precise and fast creation of parts. The technology allows computer-oriented machines have allowed individuals to learn current limitations and applications of 3D printing and bio-printing and the coming potential of the two techniques. Foremost, when people die, it’s not that their body has shut down but gets mostly brought by the failure of some body parts that the body cannot survive without. People with problems with their heart and kidneys always need organ transplants to stop them from dying. Due to this, the advances of 3D printing of organs and the 3d bioprinting has emerged and facilities printing of 3d organs. Additionally, the problems faced by people waiting for transplants are many; thus, printing organ s using the 3D bioprinting technology would be beneficial to help extend peoples life. 3d printing technology has enabled the design and rapid manufacturing of materials with complex microstructures advancement in the technology have allowed manufacturing industries to expand from designs and 3 d printing of prototypes to the massive manufacturing of end products. Since this field is rapidly emerging and growing, the paper will explore the two technologies and the associated and uniqueness of the two when it comes to various fields like medicine.
3D printing
3D printing has enabled manufactures to be able to develop components in sophisticated geometric layer fashion. Its popularity began in the 1980s when its first machine got introduced to the world. Foremost the design got used to designing prototypes that were small using plastics (Taormina et al. 2018). To create the 3D polymers got activated using light from stereolithography. Polymer 3D printing has generally grown it the technology have become promising in recent years. Foremost, companies have joined the world of 3D printing, and they are trying to advance the capabilities of the technology on polymer 3D. The latest technology has offered several opportunities in polymer 3D printing. Foremost, stereolithography (SLA) come to mark the beginning of 3D printing. The SLA technology has enabled the production of great looking parts due to its accuracy and high resolution when it comes to modelling patterns in applications. To print an item, much attention gets given. S, since the available polymers and are not inclusive when giving out the necessary properties need of a specific application.
Moreover, a single additive manufacturing (AM) dos not have all the capabilities necessary to print an individual polymer in the market. Thus selection goo of a material to design depends the customers need ad the applications. Polymers tend to get used in designing things like toys, bottles and computers, thus focusing on developing materials that get 3d printed hence allowing rapid manufacturing. The 3D printing involves several things foremost the material properties like mechanical density, thermally, and the radiation needs to get put into consideration (Taormina et al. 2018). Additionally, the processor ability of the polymer from its melting point jetting and extrusion are also other common factors.
Moreover, one needs to identify the best material of the procedure and also the availability. 3D printing has profoundly helped manufacturers to develop items across the market. It allows the pro production process to get carried out through each layer in an additive process that is contrary to old ways of production that involve casting, moulding and subtractive.
Bioprinting
Bioprinting is a new field in the regenerative healthcare filed. It involves producing three-dimensional structures to imitate tissues of the body and have become an essential area in tissues engineering, cancer studies and drug delivery. Bio-printing allows medics to offer specific structural geometry and the position of several cell forms for the making of tissues regeneration. Its acts as a subcategory of AM referred to as 3D bioprinting which involves printing of designs using viable bio-materials, cells and the biomolecules (Jamróz et al., 2014). The 3D bioprinting enables the assembling and patterning of complicated functional living structures via controlled layer positioning of cell and biological hydrogels components gradient design.
They have begun an increase in the demand for creating bio-artificial organs to replace, restore and repair the failed or damaged organs. The request has grown for all type of organs from such as liver, kidney, heart and lungs. The 3D bioprinting, or the rapid prototyping, reliable freeform manufacturing (SFM) have emerged to help in producing bioartificial organs. The technology has tremendously helped in the printing of live cells combined with the polymeric hydrogels with the command of CAD models. Natural polymers act as the significant components for 3D printing and have played a vital role in the 3D bio-printing mechanics during the staged 3D construction.
Moreover, Cell behaviours in the natural polymeric get run via changing the biochemical physiological and physical attributes of the needed polymer. Synthetic and natural polymers get considered for several bioprinting applications, but they both have their advantages and limitations (Rider et al., 2018). Natural polymers tend to mimic the native extracellular matrix, thus causing a more liked cellular response while synthetic polymers get more easily tailored for better efficient printing. Although bioprinting optimization has remained a challenge, emerging trends in bio-ink have started to resolve the issue, thus giving the technology a promising future in regenerative medicine.
Comparison
Medical science has seen many developments related to humans and their health. Medicine and technology have seen many tremendous improvements. The new technology of 3D printing and bioprinting has come as the new revolution in medical science that has enabled doctors and specialist to detect human problems in their organs and tissues. 3D bio-printing is at 3-dimensional printing used for biological tissues and organs that get used in the living cells (Skardal & Atala, 2015). Although 3D bioprinting is in the development stage, 3d printing of other items has grown over a specified period of tie. Besides the technology being in the development stage, there are presently getting tested to help create and replace human organs and tissues. The process of bioprinting works to identify the composted elements of the targeted tissue and cells to make them correctly and as precise as possible. Reports indicate that bio-printing has evolved when it comes benefiting areas alike detecting heart models, recreating blood cell and tissues, brain surgery and organ transplants.
The bioprinting process occurs to form the pre-processing stage, which involves the planning goals that precede the fabrication of the printed tissues. The stage requires imaging (MRI, CT) to examine the structure of the particular anatomical and fabric and the subsequent C-A-D to change the radiology information into a draft for bio-printing. Special software programs transform radiology information into cross-sectional phases of necessary scale-like bio-printing gadgets which add the layer to layer design (Skardal & Atala, 2015). The second phase is the processing phase that involves the real manufacturing and construction of bio-printed tissues. The challenges in this phase is that of deciding on a precise printing formula combination of items like scaffold and bio-ink. The problems get brought since depending on the selection chosen, the interactions of the individual components can get altered and can also influence the end tissue product. Lastly, the other stage is the post processing stage and includes the necessary steps required before the bio-printed tissues get fully mature and ready for usages (Taormina et al. 2018). The process takes place in the bioreactor for most bioprinting items. However, the bioreactor needs to get more refined to be fully used in the technology since it comes with a lot of limitation like loss of tissue viability.
On the other hand, 3D printing technology has tremendously grown. The technology began with the inkjet 3D bioprinting. Foremost, the printing fist utilized the business-oriented 2D printer that got improved to design organic layers of ink. The 2D bioprinter known as the drop on demand printer used a non-contact method that use electromagnetic and thermal energy to produce drops of bio-ink onto a surface. A bioprinter when printing can get mistaken for the traditional 3D printer, but on a closer look, one finds that it gets to print a moist construct onto a pert dish. Both bioprinter and 3D printer mechanically emit a specific substance to develop the needed design. However, both are not build to use the same material or print the same item.
3D printers have been around for a long time, and prints materials like metal, rubber, polymer resins and plastics, and the health care industry can use them to create surgical instruments and implants. On the other hand, bioprinters get designed to print biological materials and bio-inks. Bio inks get laden with mammalian cells and living human. It involves using scaffolds and crosslinking to make sure that the construct gets developed successfully and look like the targeted tissues in both function and structure (Taormina et al. 2018). When dishing, bioprinters regularly print gel or liquid-based materials and can get to write anything from molasses to materiel and thick paste. While the 3D printers extrude molten plastic that normally Haden to become 3D objects.
Pros and cons
It’s very vital to understand that bioprinting and 3D printings are rapidly growing technology, and both come with their unique set of advantages and limitations. Foremost the 3D printing technology has several benefits, to begin with, the idea of venturing to the technology comes at les startup cost and low cost in prototyping with a quick turnaround this makes the entire process of 3D prototyping very cost-effective (Oropallo & Piegl, 2016).
Additionally, its generic complexity has no extra cost and have a wide range of unique materials. 3d printing comes with the freedom of design which boasts the ability to produce complex geometric mechanism. Additionally, it allows the rapid distribution of prototypes where prototypes get produce in mere hours, which increases the need for the design process. However, it has several limitations in that they have limited accuracy and tolerances. Additionally, the materials have low strength and anisotropic properties. And there is also the problem of limited materials and limited build volume where many of the 3D printers include industrial grades printers and have a small build chamber.
Looking at bioprinting, it also comes with several pros and cons. Foremost, it is precise and faster than the old methods of creating body parts thorough hands. Additionally, they are less prone to human errors and that they have less labour. Moreover, the body parts are always not likely to get dismissed after transplantation. And thus, they tend to decrease the waiting time for organ donation (Oropallo & Piegl, 2016). Besides that, the well-arranged and various cell types create room for improvement of certain tissue functions. However, the disadvantages of bioprinting are that there is the debated ownership of the implants and codes.
Additionally, there is a lot of ethical questions in the field. Besides, technology tends to consume more energy, and there is also the emission of unhealthy particles into the air. Lastly, there is the question of liability when the printed object fails.
Applications and Advancement
The technology of 3D printing and bioprinting have had a lot of requests and advancement. Foremost, the technology on bioprinting is profoundly getting utilized in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Where tissues are getting engineered accordingly. This field is also seeing a lot of advancement to try and find how there can be tissue regeneration when creating heart valves, although the values do not regenerate (Dankar et al., 2018). Additionally, studies are getting conducted to find how accurate the axisymmetric valves can get printed. Moreover, studies are getting conducted in areas of lungs, brain and skin tissues to see how there can be the engineering of the muscles.
Furthermore, 3d gets applied in the field of pharmaceutical and massive throughput screen where models are getting used to test the efficiency and effectiveness of drugs. Additionally, there is also the area of bioprinting of cancer research. All this technology are getting advanced to help in improving the healthcare and medicine sector.
The 3D printing technology is also getting utilized in several areas like designing and developing of guns, cosmetics forensics and food staffs (Dankar et al., 2018). Companies are trying to use the technology to venture into new markets, but there is the barrier of much competition. The printers have also advanced to become more prominent, faster, more robust and more accurate when designing.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the technology of 3D printing has become a massive game-changer in several fields. Foremost it has profoundly impacted the field of medicine and has enabled researchers to try out new ways to cure disease and develop body organs through bioprinting. This field continues to advances and has a vast potential to move to 4 D printing in the new future. Despite the many challenges getting experience, there is a massive impact and scientist are having mush interest in the area of bioprinting as it is a promising technology. The future of bioprinting will bring radical changes in the production of artificial organs from 3D printers.
References
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