While many people, like actor Patrick Stewart (pictured) wear their baldness with pride, for others, it is something that they wish to ‘fix’. New technology being developed by L’Oréal could lead to 3D printing of new hair follicles that are capable of sprouting new hair. A new 3D printing technique could finally result in a cure for baldness.
While hair transplants, such as those had by England footballer Wayne Rooney, are possible, they involving a painstakingly long and expensive process. New technology being developed by L’Oréal could lead to 3D printing of new hair follicles that are capable of sprouting new hair.
The cosmetics firm has teamed up with French bioprinting company Poietis in order to develop the groundbreaking technology. Current tissue engineering techniques are limited in terms of cell patterns. However, the two companies believe that they can crack the process needed to bioprint a hair follicle. The technique, developed by Poietis, uses laser-assisted bioprinting tech to produce biological tissue and can ‘position cells in 3D with extremely high cellular resolution (on the order of ten microns) and cellular viability (over 95 per cent)’, according to a statement from L’Oréal. Read More…
A 3D printer (pictured) is used to layer micro-drops of bioinks using a laser beam. The living biological tissue created is then matured for around three weeks before it can be used in tests
