DePuy Synthes is collaborating with Aspect Biosystems on a 3-D printed artificial meniscus.

Johnson & Johnson is adding another 3-D printing partnership to its resume.

Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC has announced that DePuy Synthes Products is collaborating with Aspect Biosystems on knee meniscus tissue to be created using Aspect's Lab-on-a-Printer bioprinting technology. The innovation is aiming to improve patient results after treatment for a torn meniscus. The Canadian company is focused on creating customized human tissue through 3-D bioprinting.

"We are very excited to work with a global healthcare leader like DePuy Synthes," Tamer Mohamed, president and CEO of Aspect Biosystems, said in a press release. "This collaboration marks a significant step for Aspect to apply our 3-D bioprinting platform technology in developing groundbreaking tissue replacement therapies that hold the real potential to improve quality of life for patients."

Johnson & Johnson has been prolific in the 3-D printing space, signing on to collaborations in recent years with companies like Carbon, HP, Tissue Regeneration Systems, Materialise, and more. Other large medical device players, like Stryker and GE, have invested in the 3-D printing space through acquisitions and new facilities.

Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC, the healthcare and consumer behemoth's collaborative segment, has taken part in hundreds of transactions across the device, pharmaceutical, and biotech landscape. The Aspect Biosystems collaboration was one of 15 new transactions announced January 5^th in a press release. Other deals announced include efforts as diverse as finding improved treatments for depression, developing a therapy for early-stage rheumatoid arthritis, and even the creation of a sleep coaching system for parents and babies.

"Through Johnson & Johnson Innovation, we are committed to identifying and advancing novel solutions in areas of significant need and creating customized deal structures with innovators in an effort to accelerate products to market," Paul Stoffels, MD, Johnson & Johnson chief scientific officer, said in the release.

[Image courtesy of TAOKINESIS/PIXABAY]