Researchers at the University of Oregon, together with French skin care company L’Oréal, have found a way to create a super-realistic equivalent of human skin.
So far they have been using it to test products to protect and heal human flesh.
Their groundbreaking technique, detailed in the journal Advanced Functional Materials, uses a 3D printer to create multilayered skin-like cell colonies in just 18 days, according to University of Oregon officials.
“This is the first known case of replication of high-quality, full-thickness skin tissue using different cell types separated by a membrane,” said Ievgenii Liashenko, a research engineer at the university’s Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact.
To recreate the complex, multi-layered human skin, the researchers designed an artificial two-layer version with a membrane separating the two.
L’Oréal is currently using the artificial skin to test cosmetics and skin care products. Researchers at UO and L’Oréal plan to explore other potential applications, including healing diabetic foot ulcers and creating skin grafts for burn patients.
– Betsy Hammond, betsyhammond@oregonian.com
