Synthetic material mimics living tissue

Nature : Using a 3D printer, researchers in the UK have created networks of lipid-coated water droplets that behave like living cells. Each droplet is bipolar, with one end being hydrophilic, and the other hydrophobic. The hydrophilic ends stick to each other, forming a lipid bilayer similar to the cell membranes of living organisms. To build the structures, Gabriel Villar of Cambridge Consultants and colleagues created a printer with a nozzle that squirts water droplets into an oilâlipid mixture. As the droplets sink, they are coated in lipid. The nozzle can be adjusted to squirt the droplets in different patterns so that they form various shapes, such as spheres, cubes, or even flowers. The mechanism was further engineered to create curved structures, and a toxin was added to bore holes in the lipid bilayer so an electrical current can pass through. Because the result is a cohesive material with cooperating compartments, it can mimic the emergent properties of tissues, according to the group’s study , published today in Science.