Organovo Holdings, Inc. , a creator and manufacturer of functional, three-dimensional human tissues for medical research and therapeutic applications, is working with researchers at Autodesk, to create the first 3D design software for bioprinting.
The software, which will be used to control Organovo’s NovoGen MMX bioprinter, will represent a major step forward in usability and functionality for designing three-dimensional human tissues and has the potential to open up bioprinting to a broader group of users.
“Autodesk is an excellent partner for Organovo in developing new software for 3D bioprinters,” said Keith Murphy, chairman and chief executive officer at Organovo. “This relationship will lead to advances in bioprinting, including both greater flexibility and throughput internally, and the potential long-term ability for customers to design their own 3D tissues for production by Organovo.”
“Bioprinting has the potential to change the world,” said Jeff Kowalski, senior vice president and chief technology officer at Autodesk. “It’s a blend of engineering, biology and 3D printing, which makes it a natural for Autodesk. I think working with Organovo to explore and evolve this emerging field will yield some fascinating and radical advances in medical research.”
Organovo’s 3D bioprinting technology is used to create living human tissues that are three-dimensional, architecturally correct, and made entirely of living human cells. The resulting structures can function like native human tissues, and represent an opportunity for advancement in medical research, drug discovery and development, and in the future, surgical therapies and transplantation.