Lithuanian biotech startup Vital3D is making waves in regenerative medicine, aiming to bioprint transplantable human organs within the next decade or so. But before tackling hearts and kidneys, the company is starting small by healing dog wounds with the world’s first printed wound patch for pets.
What Does Vital 3D Do?
Vital3D Creates World’s First Bioprinter Wound Patch For Pets
Aakash Dhage/Unsplash
Headquartered in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, Vital3D employs a patented laser-based bioprinting platform that accurately expels living cells and biomaterials to replicate the intricate tissue structures of natural tissue. CEO Vidmantas Šakalys, motivated by the death of a mentor to urinary cancer, has set out to create 3D-printed kidneys.
The startup’s initial commercial product, VitalHeal, is a bioprinted skin patch for canines. The game-changing patch contains embedded growth factors to speed healing and minimize the risk of infection. The micro-porous surface allows for airflow while denying bacteria, creating a sterile healing environment.
Vital3D asserts that VitalHeal can reduce healing time from 12 weeks to 4–6 weeks and vet appointments from 8 to as low as 2. Apart from that, it vows to minimize the risk of infection from 30% to less than 10% and cut surgery time in half, making treatment less expensive and safer.
Priced at €300 (or €150 wholesale), the patch could seem costly, but it may reduce overall treatment costs from €3,000 to €1,500 for pet owners.
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Seizing Opportunity in the Booming Animal Wound Care Market
The worldwide animal wound care market is expected to expand from $1.4 billion in 2024 to $2.1 billion by 2030, led by increasing pet adoption and the need for enhanced care. Vital3D’s serviceable addressable market is estimated at €76.5 million in the EU and US, planning to sell 100,000 units through 2027–2028.
Dogs are an obvious starting point, since their high activity levels, repeat surgeries, and incidence of cancer require efficient solutions for wound care.
Bioprinting Medicine of the Future
In addition to pet medicine, Vital3D is working on cutting-edge medicine. Tests in Lithuania and the UK will start this summer, with a non-degradable patch set to be released next year.
According to The Next Web, the company is also considering biodegradable and human-grade equivalents for diabetic ulcers, burn patients, and wounded soldiers.
Working with Lithuania’s National Cancer Institute, the firm is developing organoids for cancer drug testing and bioprinted stents.
But that end vision remains clear: bioprinting organs for transplants.
Solving Scientific Challenges in Organ Bioprinting
Vital3D’s 3D printing technology employs a photosensitive bio-ink formed by light to replicate intricate biological structures. The primary challenges to overcome include:
- Vascularization: developing blood vessels to supply tissues
- Cell differentiation: developing different cell types needed in organs
Šakalys seeks to fix these by beginning with fewer cells and differentiating them while printing.
The WHO states that less than 10% of patients who need them receive organ transplants annually. In the United States, approximately 90,000 individuals are waiting for kidneys, where demand is higher than supply.
A Vision for Personalized Bioprinted Medicine
Šakalys envisions a future where bioprinting not only closes the organ gap but also allows for personalized medicine, bioengineered from a patient’s cells.
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