The Russian astronauts “print” at the end of September at the International Space Station (ISS) animal muscle tissue , said today Hesuani Yusef, director of the Russian company Bioprinting 3D Solutions.
Hesuani told RIA Novosti that special containers with the raw material for 3-D printing of the fabrics will fly to the ISS on September 25 on board the Soyuz MS-15 ship.
The experiment, he said, will be carried out “immediately after the coupling” of the Russian spacecraft to the space station.
According to the co-founder of this company, in his laboratories experiments are currently being carried out to print 3-D muscle tissues of cattle, bluefin tuna and salmon.
“In the next experiment we plan to print rabbit, cow and fish cells,” he said, explaining that researchers prepare cells from three types of fish, one of which will be chosen to be sent to space.
This is not the first experiment conducted in space with a bioprinter, but it is the first time that muscle tissues will be reproduced.
So far all samples have been small, but human cartilaginous tissue , mouse thyroid, bone tissue and proteins have been reproduced.
The 3-D magnetic bioprinter project started in 2016 and is supported by the United Space and Rocket Corporation (ORKK).
During this time several experimental models of printers were created. The first 3D biological printer destined for space was damaged during the accident suffered by the Soyuz-FG rocket on October 11 last year.
On December 3, 2019, a new 3-D magnetic bioprinter was sent to the ISS. On December 20 the Soyuz MS-11 ship returned to Earth with samples of human cartilage and thyroid gland from a mouse produced in the Russian segment of the ISS with this printer.
3-D Bioprinting Solutions is a biotechnological research laboratory founded in 2013 by INVITRO, the largest private medicine company in Russia, and specializes in the creation of bioprinters and materials for the creation of cellular tissues.
Source: Elcomercio
