Norbert Radacsi, a chemical engineering lecturer at the University of Edinburgh in the U.K., who was not involved in the latest research, described the development as an "amazing breakthrough," but noted that there are still several issues to be addressed.
"It was expected for a while that in a few years we will be able to 3D-print fully functional human hearts, which can replace our faulty ones," Radacsi told Newsweek. "According to this recent study from Israel, we are closer than we thought. This study demonstrated that with [a] newly developed support material, it is possible to 3D-print 2-centimeter tall human hearts. In order to print fully functional adult-size human hearts, further research is needed.
"3D-printing a blood vessel is extremely challenging, as artificial blood vessels tend to burst over time. The current 3D-printed human hearts are excellent for drug testing, but many issues still need to be addressed before we can do a human transplant, for example, the printed heart will need to have long-term functionality without any problems," Radacsi said.
"This article will hopefully boost the research in this field, so humans can get a new hearts from their own stem cells within five to 10 years. We can implement the presented 3D bio-printing technology to print other organs as well."
Radacsi said that this research, as well as the development of 3D bio-printing, is part of a revolution in the field of bioengineering.