It looks like a tape dispenser, but what it actually does is attach strips of “skin” created from gel cartridges. The artificial skin impression is not a novelty, getting it applied directly on the patient’s body is. This new device seeks to apply a gel composed of skin cells, collagen and fibrin to help heal wounds.

When a wound cut is deep enough and the skin cannot heal properly, a skin graft is usually applied. This helps the skin to heal better and protects the patient from infections. Usually these are autografts (skin from the same person) or allografts (skin from another person), the alternative to this is artificial skin generated from different types of tissues that the body does not reject.

Printing bioartificial patches

The problem with artificial compounds is the difficulty of applying them to the patient. Tissues are printed with cumbersome machines that can hardly function in an operating room. Several researchers at the University of Toronto have designed a device that tries to solve this problem by being considerably smaller. To make it so small and manageable, it no longer creates meshes, but a gel with living cells.

The device works by means of bioartificial gel cartridges, as if it were ink cartridges. According to its developers, the cartridges with the gel are for single use and can be customizable for the needs of each patient. When applied on a surface, sheets of skin tissue are created thanks to some rollers that are in the contact area.

At the moment the device is still in the testing phase, its correct operation is being tested and in some animals before starting to carry out tests with humans. One of the biggest difficulties so far is growing cells, a slow process. With the passage of time they hope to be able to use stem cells directly, so that the applied gel is not rejected by any patient.