Elsewhere, researchers are applying similar approaches to soft tissues and organs.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt UTS, for example, there are a lot of researchers in this space working to better understand cardiac tissue, and how we can use that understanding to improve health outcomes for clients who have cardiac issues,\u201d Brown said. \u201cAnd some of the work they\u2019re doing includes printing cardiac tissue and vascular tissue.\u201d<\/p>\n
One research project currently underway involves stressing cardiac tissue in a controlled environment, which Brown described as \u201clike a heart attack in a lab\u201d.<\/p>\n
While many of these technologies remain in the research phase, they could dramatically expand treatment options for patients with complex injuries and organ failure by creating living tissues that more closely replicate the body\u2019s natural function.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom the tissue engineering perspective, we can look at creating grafts or potentially even whole organs in the future that would significantly increase our capacity to deal with life-threatening organ failure,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
READ: How synthetic biology can tackle existing engineering challenges in novel ways<\/a><\/p>\n 2. Rehabilitation engineering<\/p>\n Brown, whose own work focuses on wheelchair seating and assistive technology for people with spinal cord injuries, said rehabilitation engineering is becoming increasingly collaborative, since many modern approaches combine expertise from engineering, neuroscience and medicine.<\/p>\n That multidisciplinary approach is opening new avenues for treating neurological injuries that have historically had limited therapeutic options.<\/p>\n As create reported<\/a> in 2024, researchers at UNSW are exploring a novel approach to treating spinal cord injuries and other central nervous system disorders by redesigning how existing drugs are delivered.\u00a0<\/p>\n Rather than attempting to force medicines across the brain\u2019s protective blood-brain barrier, the team is using gold nanoparticles and naturally occurring transport proteins to carry drugs from muscle tissue back to the brain and spinal cord via the nervous system.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s another project affiliated with Griffith University in Queensland called BioSpine<\/a>, which is looking at creating multimodal rehabilitation therapies that promote neuron growth and recovery from neurological damage, including spinal cord injury,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n These projects are another indicator of the shift towards technologies that not only compensate for lost function, but actively support the body\u2019s repair mechanisms.<\/p>\n