Tissue printing sounds very interesting since it bring forward the concept of custom made tissue that can be made in the lab and can cure disease. But, this is a tough problem. It is difficult to make tissue that functions normally and be very safe to put it back into human.
However, there is one tissue that is great demand and that does not require clearance by the FDA. That is leather. A father and son team, gabor and Andras Forgacs, founded a company that is called Modern Meadow who’s goal is to produce leather. Leather is not necessarily regulated and if you can make it cheaper that it costs then it is very attractive.
The unique feature will be that you get this great material without killing any animals and it would be great selling point. Modern Meadows also wants to print our dinner steak but that is a few years ahead. Right now, they are working towards manufacturing leather.
How that can be distinguished from real leather derived from animal hide, how expensive it is to produce and how can it be commercialized are all good questions.
Look at the company website to find out more…