Researchers ‘print’ cells from the eye

Inkjet printing technology has been used to successfully print cells taken from the eye for the first time in a study funded by Fight for Sight.

The breakthrough, published in the journal Biofabrication, could reportedly lead to the production of artificial tissue grafts made from the variety of cells found in the human retina.

A piezoelectric inkjet printer was used to print two types of cells from the retina of adult rats – ganglion cells and glial cells, researchers said. The printed cells remained healthy and retained their ability to survive and grow in culture.

Co-authors of the study Professor Keith Martin and Dr Barbara Lorber, from the John van Geest Centre for Brain Repair, University of Cambridge, said: ‘The loss of nerve cells in the retina is a feature of many blinding eye diseases. The retina is an exquisitely organised structure where the precise arrangement of cells in relation to one another is critical for effective visual function.