Chinese scientists create world's first 3D-printed male sex organ for ED treatment
erectile dysfunction (ED) could soon be available, after groundbreaking advances in biomedical 3D printing by Chinese researchers.
Advertisement
ED is surprisingly common: it affects more than 40 per cent of men aged 40 and above . Now, a team of researchers has used hydrogel-based bioinks to develop a 3D-printed penile implant system which anatomically replicates all functional components of natural erectile tissue.
During testing, all animal models (pigs and rabbits) exhibited restored erectile capacity post-implantation, with reproductive success rates surging from 25 per cent in controls to 100 per cent in the treatment group.
Details of the landmark study were published in Nature Biomedical Engineering on March 4.
'These findings indicate that the implants markedly improved functional recovery,' wrote lead author Wang Yingjun, who is an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering and president of the National Engineering Research Centre for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction at the South China University of Technology.
Advertisement
The
penis has the most complex vascular network of all human organs. It comprises arteries, veins, the corpora cavernosa and the tunica albuginea. When the cavernous spaces within the penis fill with blood, it results in an erection.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
HKFP
6 days ago
- HKFP
‘Peace of mind': Patient companions ease pain of China's bustling, bamboozling hospitals
At a bustling Beijing hospital, Tian Yigui hands over some of his elderly wife's paperwork to Meng Jia, a 'patient companion' hired to help navigate China's stretched and bureaucratic healthcare system. Yawning funding gaps and patchy medical coverage have long funnelled many Chinese people towards better-resourced city hospitals for much-needed care. Sprawling, overcrowded and noisy, the facilities can be exhausting for patients and their families, especially the elderly. The problem has fuelled the rise of patient companions, or 'peizhenshi', a lucrative and unofficial service in the country's growing gig economy. Tian, 83, said most Beijing hospitals were 'overwhelmingly confusing'. 'We have to go up and down all the floors, wait for elevators, wait in lines… it's really troublesome,' he told AFP. Elsewhere at the People's Liberation Army General Hospital in the Chinese capital, patients faced long queues, myriad check-ins and a whirl of digital payment codes. Hospital aides wearing bright red sashes rattled off directions into headsets as hundreds of patients filed through the colossal lobby. Armed with a sheaf of papers at a traditional Chinese medicine ward, Meng breezed through check-in before joining Tian and wife Gao Yingmin in a consultation room. Leaving Gao to rest in a waiting area, Meng then brought Tian to a payment counter before explaining to the couple how to pick up prescribed medications. For a four-hour service, patient companions like Meng charge around 300 yuan (US$40). It is worth every penny for Gao, 78, who is undergoing treatment for complications from throat surgery. The helpers are 'convenient, practical and (give us) peace of mind', she said, straining against a breathing tube. 'We no longer have to worry… they do all the work for us.' 'Real need' Hundreds of advertisements for patient companions have sprung up on Chinese social media in recent years. Embed from Getty Images Authorities appear to allow the companions in hospitals because they are broadly in line with the government's promotion of health services for seniors. Meng, 39, had no medical background before enrolling in a weeklong training programme run by Chengyi Health, an online platform that connects patients and companions. Founder Li Gang, a former anaesthesiologist, said 'there's a big knowledge gap when it comes to medical care'. Large Chinese hospitals can have over 50 clinical departments, each with numerous sub-specialities. That means many people 'don't know how to go to the doctor', Li said. While some young people — such as expectant mothers — hire companions, some two-thirds of Chengyi's clients are aged 60 or older. Trainee Tao Yuan, 24, said he left his job at an internet company to pursue a vocation 'more valuable than money'. A generation born under China's now-abolished one-child policy are approaching middle age and caring for their elderly parents alone. Increasing work and family pressure had left them with a 'real need' for help, Tao said. Ageing nation China's healthcare system has long struggled to tackle deep-seated regional funding gaps and inconsistent access to equipment and medical staff. Limited treatment options, especially in rural areas, push many patients into municipal hospitals for comparatively minor ailments. Embed from Getty Images 'It's a perennial structure problem,' said Wang Feng, an expert on Chinese demographics at the University of California, Irvine. Working adults have no time to take elderly parents to hospital, while technology cannot yet replace human caregivers, he said. China 'will have a larger… demand for personal assistance' as the elderly account for an ever bigger proportion of the population, Wang said. Authorities are betting big on the 'silver economy' — products and services for older people, which totalled seven trillion yuan ($970 billion) last year, according to the nonprofit China Association of Social Welfare and Senior Service. The figures are a bright spot in an economy struggling to maintain strong growth and robust youth employment. Xiao Shu, who asked to be identified by a nickname for privacy, told AFP he made around 10,000 yuan (US$1,400) per month – a tidy wage in China's competitive capital. But the former dentistry worker said there were limits to the service. The 36-year-old once refused to take a client's nearly 90-year-old father to a post-surgery check-up. 'If something happened to him, who would be responsible for it?' he said.
HKFP
28-06-2025
- HKFP
WHO says all Covid-19 origin theories remain open after inconclusive study
All hypotheses on how the Covid-19 pandemic began remain open, the World Health Organization said Friday, following an inconclusive four-year investigation that was hamstrung by crucial information being withheld. The global catastrophe killed an estimated 20 million people, according to the WHO, while shredding economies, crippling health systems and turning people's lives upside-down. The first cases were detected in Wuhan in China in late 2019, and understanding where the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID came from is key to preventing future pandemics. However, a lengthy investigation launched by the UN's health agency said that pending further data, the origin of Covid and how it first spread remains elusive. 'As things stand, all hypotheses must remain on the table, including zoonotic spillover and lab leak,' WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference, referring to the two main hypotheses as to how the pandemic began. Expert investigation An initial WHO-Chinese joint report in March 2021 concluded that the virus most likely jumped from bats to humans via an intermediate animal. It deemed a leak from Wuhan's virology laboratories — known for their research on coronaviruses — to be 'extremely unlikely'. However, that investigation faced harsh criticism for lacking transparency and access, and for not seriously evaluating the lab-leak theory. Tedros launched another investigation, setting up the Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO), comprising 27 international experts, in July 2021. Their 78-page report was published on Friday. It said the weight of available evidence suggests a spillover from animals — either directly from bats, or through an intermediate host. However, it could not conclude with certainty where and when this happened, nor whether the Wuhan wet market was where the virus first spilled over into humans. That said, the market 'appears to be the location for amplification of infection in humans', leading to widespread transmission. 'Evidence for widespread infections or cases in any other countries prior to December 2019 is lacking,' it added. While spillover was the best supported theory on the evidence currently available, 'until further requests for information are met, or more scientific data becomes available, the origins of SARS-CoV-2 and how it entered the human population will remain inconclusive,' SAGO chair Marietjie Venter said at the press conference. Lab leak theories 'could not be investigated or excluded', she said, because much of the needed information had not been made available. The experts requested unpublished information from other countries, notably Germany and the United States, but without success, she said. Earlier this week, one SAGO member resigned and three others asked for their names to be removed from the report. 'Crucial question' 'Over the past five years, we have learned a lot about Covid-19 but there is one crucial question about the pandemic that we have not yet answered: how it started,' Tedros said. 'Despite our repeated requests, China hasn't provided hundreds of viral sequences from individuals with Covid-19 early in the pandemic, more detailed information on animals sold at markets in Wuhan, and information on work done and biosafety conditions at laboratories in Wuhan,' he said. He said WHO has requested access to intelligence reports by governments around the world on the origins of Covid-19. US President Donald Trump's administration has officially embraced the lab leak theory. Moral imperative Tedros said finding out how Covid-19 started was a moral imperative for those who lost their lives in the pandemic and to prevent further outbreaks. He said the virus was continuing to evolve, take lives and leave people suffering with post-Covid conditions, or so-called long Covid. Tedros said the WHO is appealing to countries with information about the origins of Covid-19 to share information. SAGO said it would continue to evaluate any new, sound scientific evidence and update its findings accordingly.
AllAfrica
27-06-2025
- AllAfrica
China steps closer to landing on moon by 2030
China has successfully conducted an escape flight test on its lunar spacecraft Mengzhou, which means 'dream ship' in Mandarin. By 2030, the country plans to send three Chinese astronauts to land on the moon. It was the second zero-altitude escape flight test in 27 years, following the first one conducted by the Shenzhou manned spacecraft in 1998. Zero altitude means the test was performed on the ground instead of high in the air. The launch escape system or tower, powered by solid rocket motors (SRMs), was installed at the tip of the Mengzhou aircraft's return capsule. In an emergency during a launch, the capsule is to be separated from the rocket within two seconds whenever the system detects any abnormal situation. During the test on June 17, the integrated spacecraft and launch escape tower assembly ascended and reached its designated altitude in about 20 seconds. The return capsule separated from the escape tower and landed on the ground with a parachute in two minutes. According to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA), Mengzhou's escape and rescue subsystems are now centralized in the spacecraft. In Shenzhou's case, the rocket handled the escape functions. 'Mengzhou will become the core manned spacecraft sustaining the application and development of China's space station, manned lunar exploration, and other tasks,' said the CMSA. 'The successful test has laid an important technical foundation for the subsequent human-crewed lunar exploration missions.' The China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp (CASIC) Fourth Academy, the developer of the launch escape tower, said in a statement on June 24 that its team has achieved many breakthroughs in developing SRMs, which use solid propellants to generate thrust. It said such an achievement significantly improved Mengzhou's escape system compared with Shenzhou's. 'For the first time, we were responsible for developing the escape system's server using self-developed sensors and mechanics,' it said on June 24. 'We also developed the software and algorithms to control the SRMs, and used environmentally friendly rocket fuels.' 'We will continue to take practical actions to realize China's dream of sending people to the moon,' it said. In January 2022, the United States imposed sanctions on the CASIC Fourth Academy and accused it of acting contrary to US national security or foreign policy interests. After testing the escape system, CMSA's next key mission is to launch the Long March 10A rocket in 2026. China launched its uncrewed Chang'e 6 spacecraft to the moon in May last year using the Long March 5 rocket. Long March 5, nicknamed 'Fat Five,' has eight YF-100 rocket engines in four boosters, and two YF-77 engines on its first stage. Total thrust is 10,636 kilonewtons (kN). It can lift 25 tons to low Earth orbit (LEO), 14 tons to the geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) and 8 tons to the Earth-moon-transfer orbit, or trans-lunar injection (TLI) trajectory. Such lifting power is not enough to support China's crewed lunar mission. Long March 10 is an upgraded version of Long March 5. It has 14 YF-100 engines in two boosters and seven more on its first stage. The total thrust is 26,250 kN. It can lift 70 tons to LEO and 27 tons to TLI. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) planned to launch the Long March 10 in 2027. However, it said last November that it would launch the Long March 10A in 2026. The Long March 10A is the Long March 10 without two boosters. It can lift 14 tons, or a spacecraft with up to seven people, to LEO, and can be reused. 'The development of our next-generation crewed Long March 10 rocket is on schedule,' said Wang Yue, a researcher at the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp. 'We have achieved some breakthroughs in developing reusable rockets, and have already started producing the components. According to CNSA's plan, China will launch the Long March 10 thrice between 2027 and 2030. By 2030, the fourth and fifth launches will be a moon lander (Lanyue) and the Mengzhou spacecraft, respectively. None of these rockets will be reused. During the 2030 mission, the spacecraft carrying three astronauts will dock with the lander before landing on the moon. In 2023, CNSA decided to launch the lander and spacecraft separately, as its more powerful Long March 9 rocket will only be available after 2030. Some Chinese commentators said the lunar exploration mission of the Long March 10 will continue to expand after Chinese astronauts' landing on the moon. 'Landing on the moon is only a small part of our country's lunar exploration plan,' a Sichuan-based columnist writes in an article last month. 'We have a much bigger goal – to transform the moon into China's backyard.' 'After our astronauts reach the moon, our people will move and live there sooner or later,' he says. 'We will chat and have entertainment on the moon, treating the place like our backyard.' He says Chinese astronauts will build houses on the moon and frequently travel between the Earth and the moon. He says China will also use its space technology to boost ties with other countries and help send astronauts from different countries to the moon. Ultimately, China will discover how to extract water and make oxygen using resources on the moon. 'Our lunar plan keeps accelerating, while the United States keeps postponing its plan,' he says. 'It is possible that China will beat the US in sending people to the moon in this round of the space race.' On December 19, 1972, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) landed humans on the moon during the Apollo 17 mission. It plans to revisit the Moon in mid-2027 with the Artemis III mission. Two of four astronauts, including the first woman and first person of color, are to land on the Moon's South Pole for a week of scientific exploration. Read: US, China in hot race to put nuclear reactors on the moon
