In a groundbreaking new study, researchers at the University of Minnesota have 3D printed a functioning, centimeter-scale human heart pump in the lab. The discovery could have major implications for studying heart disease, according to the university.

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In the past, researchers have tried to 3D print cardiomyocytes, or heart muscle cells, that were derived from pluripotent human stem cells — cells with the potential to develop into any type of cell in the body. Researchers would reprogram these stem cells to heart muscle cells and then use specialized 3D printers to print them within a three-dimensional structure called an extracellular matrix. The problem was that scientists could never reach critical cell density for the heart muscle cells to work. The researchers in this study flipped the process and reported that it […]

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