How stem cells could lead to 3D-printed organs

Forget plastic toys. Researchers want to build a 3D printer that can assemble a human heart

Soon, patients may not have to wait for available transplantable organs.
(Image credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

In the future, instead of spending months waiting for a life-saving heart transplant, you might be able to just print a new heart.

That's the wild new promise of a major breakthrough in 3D printing, which seeks to enlist human embryonic stem cells to produce malleable clumps of tissue.

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Chris Gayomali is the science and technology editor for TheWeek.com. Previously, he was a tech reporter at TIME. His work has also appeared in Men's Journal, Esquire, and The Atlantic, among other places. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook.