Flexi Bones

Tipped to revolutionise the way we produce all sorts of objects, 3D printing is already stimulating innovations in medicine. A new type of 3D-printed bone implant has recently been developed, made of a blend of ceramic powder and plastics, which greatly improves on existing materials. Flexible, easily trimmed and shaped to fit during surgery, this ‘hyperelastic bone’ (HB) is also relatively cheap and fast to produce. In addition, implants in mice and rats and grafts to repair a macaque’s skull have shown that the new material is accepted and effectively stimulates the growth of real bone. Pictured is a cross-section of hyperelastic bone, 35 days after implantation in a mouse: HB fibres, appearing as dark circles, are surrounded by bone tissue, complete with blood vessels, while layers of muscle and skin have re-grown above them. Subject to more tests, this promising new material could be the future of bone repair.

Written by Emmanuelle Briolat

Emmanuelle Briolat

Writer

A researcher specialising in visual signals in Lepidoptera, camouflage and the effects of light pollution, Emmanuelle’s writing covers a range of topics, from biomedical research to children’s books about moth defences.

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• Image from work by Adam E. Jakus and colleagues
• Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, IL, USA
• Image reprinted with permission from the AAAS - the American Association for the Advancement of Science
• Published in Science Translational Medicine, September 2016