BSSE, Prayasta partner to make first 3D printer for implant-grade silicone
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru’s Center for BioSystem Science and Engineering (BSSE) has collaborated with a startup Prayasta to bring up a state-of-the-art 3D printer that can 3D print medical implant grade silicone.
Prayasta has developed this 3D printer in-house with support grants from various government agencies including Nidhi Praya’s (Department of Science & Technology Government of India), Biotech Ignition Grant (Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council), Design Clinic Scheme (MSME Center of Excellence Indian Institute of Science Bangalore), Tide 2.0 Meity Startup Hub (Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology), Elevate Call 2 Startup Karnataka (Department of Electronics, IT, BT, S&T).
The conventional 3D printer cannot use implant-grade silicone to make medical silicone implants because traditional 3D printers either use a filament or a powdered material.
The natural form of the ‘implant-grade’ silicone is a liquid (of high viscosity) and cannot be converted to a filament or a powder. Hence, conventional 3D printers cannot use ‘implant-grade’ silicone.
The 3D printer developed by Prayasta has been named Silimac P250, the world’s first 3D printer to make medical-grade silicone implants. The startup has also developed its key technology- iEAM.
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Silimac P250 can be used for personalised implants and prostheses for all soft tissues, including breast, nose, chin, ear, lip, windpipe, food pipe, calf, pectoral etc.
It is an industrial-level machine that works reliably and uninterruptedly for long production hours. It can hold up to 14,000 mL of silicone in a single refill and is production-scale-ready.
Silimac P250 has an in-built UV sterilisation for the print chamber and a contamination-free support system. The implants made by Silimac P250 are based on a Novel Internal Architecture (NIA) design methodology, which makes the implants rupture-safe with reduced risk of post-implantation displacements. The implants made by this 3D printer are personalised and are weight balanced.
Personalised shapes and sizes with perfectly symmetric appearances lead to more confidence and less anxiety in personal, professional, and social environments.
Moreover, Silimac P250 can be directly installed in hospitals providing facilities to make personalised silicone implants within the hospital.
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Shilpi Sen, CEO and Co-Founder of Prayasta, said that animal trials followed by human trials of Silimac P250 would begin soon.
Prayasta has also received the Technology Startup Awards 2022 from the Department of Science and Technology(DST), Government of India, on National Technology Day 2022 for developing indigenous technology with potential for commercialisation.
