Researchers have successfully 3D-printed brain tissue for the first time

Studying the brain is, as one might imagine, a fairly complex task—and it’s not tremendously often that scientists get to study the brain in all its three-dimensional glory. Instead, neuroscientists often rely on in vitro brain cell or tissue samples from animals. But when it comes to understanding the complex nature of the brain and its 86 billion nerve cells, those flat lab samples have limitations. But breakthrough research from researchers at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES) in Australia has created 3D-printed layered structure that incorporates neural cells to mimic the structure of brain tissue, and it could have major consequences in studying and treating conditions such as schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s.