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Scientists recently revealed in two unrelated studies that they are now “bioprinting” skin and are developing an “electronic tongue” in their continuing efforts to replicate literally everything.
In a new research paper published last week in the journal Science Translational Medicine, scientists at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine explained, “Bioprinting is a promising alternative method to generate skin substitutes because it can replicate the structural organization of the skin into biomimetic layers in vitro.”
The stated goal with the research is to be able to better treat full-thickness skin wounds.
The bioprinted skin graft improved epithelialization, reduced skin contraction, and supported normal collagen organization with reduced fibrosis. Differential gene expression demonstrated pro-remodeling protease activity in wounds transplanted with bioprinted autologous skin grafts. These results demonstrate that bioprinted skin can support skin regeneration to allow for nonfibrotic wound healing and suggest that the skin bioprinting technology may be applicable for human clinical use.
“Comprehensive skin healing is a significant clinical challenge, affecting millions of individuals worldwide, with limited options,” co-lead author Anthony Atala, director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, said in a statement. “These results show that the creation of full thickness human bioengineered skin is possible, and promotes quicker healing and more naturally appearing outcomes.”
Meanwhile, engineering researchers at Penn State University are in the process of creating another artificial human system: an electronic tongue.
In their paper, published last month in the journal Nature Communications, the scientists explain, “The first step towards the incorporation of emotional intelligence in future AI systems is to understand and identify the cortical connections between physiological and psychological factors that govern human behavior in response to one or more sensory stimuli.”
“The main focus of our work was how could we bring the emotional part of intelligence to AI,” Saptarshi Das, associate professor of engineering science and mechanics at Penn State and co-author of the study, said in a statement. “Emotion is a broad field and many researchers study psychology; however, for computer engineers, mathematical models and diverse data sets are essential for design purposes. Human behavior is easy to observe but difficult to measure and that makes it difficult to replicate in a robot and make it emotionally intelligent. There is no real way right now to do that.”
Their goal for this research is rather ambitious, and a little unsettling.
“We are trying to make arrays of graphene devices to mimic the 10,000 or so taste receptors we have on our tongue that are each slightly different compared to the others, which enables us to distinguish between subtle differences in tastes,” Das said. “The example I think of is people who train their tongue and become a wine taster. Perhaps in the future we can have an AI system that you can train to be an even better wine taster.”