Printed replacement human body parts might seem like science fiction, but this technology is rapidly becoming a reality with the potential to greatly contribute to regenerative medicine. Before any real applications, "bioprinting" still faces many technical challenges. Processing the bio-ink and making it stick to itself and hold the desired printed gel structure have been proving particularly difficult especially in inkjet printing. Few methods currently exist for gluing bio-ink droplets together and these do not work for every kind of cell, motivating new alternative approaches.

Kyocera Corporation (NYSE:KYO)(TOKYO:6971) today announced that its innovative Aquala technology received Japan’s “Prize of the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry” during the 2018 National Invention Awards held in Tokyo June 12 by the Japan Institute of Invention and Innovation (JIII).