Bioprinting bionic corals of the future
Bioprinting algae? How it all began... In 2015, a group of researchers at the Institute of Food Technology and Bioprocess Engineering and the Center for Translational Bone, Joint and Soft Tissue Research at the Technische Universitat Dresden (TUD) in Germany introduced the idea of "Green Bioprinting". Using bioprinting, they immobilized microalgae in hydrogels made of alginate and methylcellulose, and demonstrated that they were able to achieve stable growth, in contrast to suspension cultures that were dependent on temperature and illumination conditions. Practical applications of this work would include bioproduction of photosynthetic microorganisms for renewable energy, chemicals or pharmaceutical drugs. To learn about this work - read more . Today... Fast forward 5 years later, a group of researchers from UC San Diego and University of Cambridge showed how microalgae can be bioprinted to create bionic corals of the future - read more . By using a very unique approac...