On May 30, 2018 (April 16, 2018, the first 3D printed artificial cornea was released. Corneal transplantation is the most effective method to treat related diseases, but the world is facing a shortage of corneas. Titanium Media Note: 3D printing was once the hottest trend, with a large influx of capital, but the popularity has gradually dissipated in the past two years. The reason is that after 3D printing was popular, no suitable application scenarios were found. This major breakthrough in 3D printing in the cornea has brought positive signals to the industry. Technology is changing the world. Famous singer Yao Beina donated her corneas after her death in 2015. In the following year, these corneas helped three eye disease patients in Shenzhen, Chengdu and Wuhan regain their sight. As the outermost structure of the human eye, the cornea plays a vital role in focusing vision, similar to the lens of a camera. Globally, tens of millions of people suffer from impaired vision or even blindness due to corneal diseases. Corneal transplantation is the most effective method to treat related diseases, but the world is facing a shortage of corneas. ¡ø Photo source: New Third Board think tank However, recently, British scientists have developed a technology that is enough to stir the global ophthalmology community, which may restore light to tens of millions of patients suffering from corneal diseases. The first 3D printed artificial cornea has been released and cannot be used for transplantation. According to media reports such as the British Express, researchers at the University of Newcastle in the United Kingdom used 3D printing technology to print the world's first artificial cornea by extracting and developing "bio-ink" from stem cells. According to an official press release from Newcastle University, this means that this new technology can ensure an unlimited supply of corneas in the future. Researchers say that this 3D printed cornea is currently not available for transplantation, but it is expected to solve the problem of corneal donation shortage around the world in the future.¡ø Screenshot from the website of Newcastle University Currently, 10 million people around the world need surgery to prevent corneal blindness caused by infectious diseases such as trachoma, but there is a serious shortage of corneas for patient transplants around the world. In addition to these 10 million people, 5 million people have been completely blind due to burns, scratches, abrasions or corneal scarring caused by disease. In a research report published in Experimental Eye Research on May 30, 2018 local time in the UK, researchers at the University of Newcastle described a corneal stem cell mixed with alginate and collagen to create a printable solution, known as "bio-ink." Using a simple and low-cost 3D biopirter, the "bio-ink" was successfully extruded into concentric circles to form the shape of a human cornea. What's even more surprising is that the entire corneal printing process takes less than 10 minutes. Che Connon, professor of cell engineering at Newcastle University, who led the study, said: "To make 3D printed corneas possible, many research groups around the world have been looking for the ideal 'bio-ink' for years. Our unique gel-a mixture of alginate and collagen-both allows stem cells to survive while producing a material that is hard enough to retain its shape, but soft enough to be squeezed out of a 3D printer's nozzle. ¡ø Professor Che Connon (right, image source: Newcastle University official website)"This is based on our previous work-we used similar hydrogels to keep cells alive for several weeks at normal room temperature. Now we are ready to use 'bio-inks' containing stem cells, which allows users to print cells directly without worrying about growing cells individually." Professor Che Connon said. Scientists, including lead author Abigail Saxon from the University of Newcastle's Institute of Genetics and Medicine, have also shown that they can also make corneas tailored to different patients, according to an official press release from Newcastle University. This is because the size of the cells printed by the research team was originally extracted from the actual cornea-by scanning the patient's eye, they can use the data to quickly print a cornea that matches the size and shape of the patient's eye. "Our 3D printed corneas need further testing, and it will be several years before we can use these printed corneas for transplantation." Professor Che Connon added. "However, we have shown that printing corneas by scanning patients 'eyes is practical, and this approach may solve the global corneal shortage." Severe corneal shortage 15 million patients around the world are waiting for treatment The British Express reported that 15 million patients around the world must undergo surgery to prevent corneal blindness, but there is a serious shortage in the amount of cornea for transplantation. The Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIBP) estimates that there are more than 2 million patients in the UK alone, or one in 30 people, with varying degrees of vision impairment.¡ø British scientists have used "bio-ink" to print low-cost artificial cornea (Photo source: Newcastle University official website) Corneal disorders are also one of the most common diseases caused by inflammation, infection or other eye diseases. RNIBP said: "The surface of the cornea is very sensitive, it contains many nerve endings, and even very small dust or fluff can be detected. An academic study published in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) in February 2016 pointed out that in 2012, researchers found 184576 corneal transplants in 166 countries. These transplanted corneas were purchased from 283530 corneas stored in 742 eye banks. The report also pointed out that the United States and Sri Lanka export the most available corneas for transplantation. A research report from the New Third Board think tank pointed out that the United States has improved legislation and meticulous management not only ensures the supply of corneal transplants in its own country, but also exports the remaining corneas abroad. The reason why eye banks in the United States have the ability to export corneas abroad is because the law stipulates that all people who die in traffic accidents or die in public hospitals will donate their corneas without explicit objection from their family members. The law makes corneal donation a habit. In addition, although Sri Lanka is a developing country, about one in twenty of the population has signed a corneal transplant consent form, leading the world in the number of corneal donations per capita. The NCBI report concluded that only one out of every 70 corneal patients in the world can receive corneal transplants, which is enough to illustrate the serious shortage of corneas available worldwide. Therefore, scholars advocate that encouraging corneal donations must continue in all countries, but plans to develop corneal substitutes or supplements are also indispensable. The above data shows that if 3D printed corneas are put into practical use in the next few years and provide an unlimited number of transplantable corneas to the world, it will undoubtedly be a great blessing for the world's 15 million patients who are eager to see again. More than 4 million patients share the market space of our country's corneal stock or more than 10 billion daily economic journalists combed and found that corneal lesions are mainly divided into four stages of development. Phase 1: In the early stage of corneal disease, mild infections can be cured if they can be treated with timely and accurate medication; the second stage: the corneal ulcer period is mainly maintained by medication, and no repair materials have been applied; the third stage: the corneal infection is controlled in time without penetrating the cornea, but it causes irreversible damage to the corneal structure, reduces or loses vision, and can restore vision through lamellar keratoplasty; the fourth stage: the infection penetrates the cornea and affects the entire eyeball, requiring full-thickness corneal allograft surgery. The third and fourth stages are serious corneal diseases, also known as corneal blindness. Hao Fangran, a New Third Board think tank research institute, pointed out in an industry research report at the end of last year: "(my country) currently has more than 4 million patients with corneal blindness, with 100,000 new patients every year. Among them, about 2.07 million patients are in stage three; about 2.03 million patients are in stage four. In theory, the problem of corneal blindness can be effectively solved through full-thickness corneal allogeneic transplantation. However, since there are only about 5000 corneal donations in China every year, the supply is very limited and it is completely unable to meet the current demand for corneal transplantation. There is a big market gap. "From the perspective of market space, there are about 70,000 new patients with stage III corneal diseases every year, and the number of existing patients is about 2 million. Considering that the market education and popularization efficiency of existing patients is relatively low, it is difficult to estimate the penetration rate. If we only calculate the number of new patients by 70,000 and the price of corneal repair materials at 15,000 yuan, the market space needed is at least 1 billion yuan. Coupled with the penetration of some existing patient groups, the overall market space needed is about several billion yuan. Even more than 10 billion yuan. It is worth noting that 3D printing technology was initially applied to mold manufacturing, industrial design and other fields, and was gradually used for the direct manufacturing of some products. In August last year, the world's first 3D human body printer came out. It simulates body tissues and organs and uses bio-inks to make 3D printed organs more integrated with the human body. It can print various transplantable organs such as noses and mouths. 3D printing was once the hottest outlet, with a large influx of capital, but the popularity has gradually dissipated in the past two years. The reason is that after 3D printing was popular, no suitable application scenarios were found. This major breakthrough in 3D printing in the cornea has brought positive signals to the industry.