For those of you who are not familiar with the role the ovaries play in pregnancy, I will pause here so that you can ask your parents to explain the miracle of life to you. I’ve already had to have the talk with my eleven-year-old son and I’m all out of awkward metaphors.
Okay, if we’re all ready now.
Now, it’s possible that some people have already stopped reading this in order to engage in bizarre post-apocolyptic fantasies regarding the farming of human babies from a sea of mechanical ovaries. Some of those people are probably even now writing letters to their various political representatives. For those of us who are, how shall I say this, “less excitable” let’s take a moment and recognize that, as of yet, this technology has only been tested in mice, so there will be plenty of time to whip ourselves in a self-righteous frenzy later.
The ovary works because it is created as a 3D printed scaffold that is capable of supporting both the egg cells and their hormone-producing counterparts that are the basic components of a fertile human ovary. The structure itself is printed from a gelatin material derived from collagen, an animal protein that could be printed into a structure sufficiently rigid to be handled during surgery and yet allowing spaces for the growth of the necessary cells. Dr. Monica M. Laronda, post-doctoral researcher fellow at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and the lead author of the study to be released at the 2016 Endocrine Society meeting explained the long-term possibilities:
“We developed this implant with downstream human applications in mind, as it is made through a scalable 3D printing method, using a material already used in humans. We hope to one day restore fertility and hormone function in women who suffer from the side effects of cancer treatments or who were born with reduced ovarian function.”
All kidding aside, the potential to provide options for conceiving a child and carrying to term is one of the most beautiful possibilities brought about by 3D printing. Tell us how you see this impacting the world of fertility in the 3D Printed Mouse Ovaries forum over at 3DPB.com.