3D Bioplotter Research Papers

Light-based three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting has been widely studied in tissue engineering. Despite the fact that free-radical chain polymerization-based bioinks like hyaluronic acid methacrylate (HAMA) and gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA) have been extensively explored in 3D bioprinting, the thiol–ene hydrogel system has attracted increasing attention for its ability in building hydrogel scaffolds in an oxygen-tolerant and cell-friendly way. Herein, we report a superfast curing thiol–ene bioink composed of norbornene-modified hyaluronic acid (NorHA) and thiolated gelatin (GelSH) for 3D bioprinting. A new facile approach was first introduced in the synthesis of NorHA, which circumvented the cumbersome steps involved in previous works. Additionally, after…

Complex shaped bone defects that need to be filled are very common in clinic. But after filling, gaps are inevitably left between substitutes and host bone due to the poor conformability of preformed implants, hence hindering bone regeneration. Therefore, based on our previous study, we here used the bioink (named PPG) composed of polyurethane, polyacrylamide, and gelatin with optimized composition ratio to three-dimensionally (3D) print an inorganic/organic composite hydrogel scaffold with self-expandability to fill irregular bone defects and bioactivity to accelerate bone healing through adjusting the content of bioactive ceramic (BC). The results indicated that, the 3D printed BC/PPG scaffold…

Traditional tumor models do not tend to accurately simulate tumor growth in vitro or enable personalized treatment and are particularly unable to discover more beneficial targeted drugs. To address this, this study describes the use of three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting technology to construct a 3D model with human hepatocarcinoma SMMC-7721 cells (3DP-7721) by combining gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) and poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) as two immiscible aqueous phases to form a bioink and innovatively applying fluorescent carbon quantum dots for long-term tracking of cells. The GelMA (10%, mass fraction) and PEO (1.6%, mass fraction) hydrogel with 3:1 volume ratio offered distinct pore-forming characteristics,…

In recent years, a new additive manufacturing (AM) method for three-dimensional (3D) syringe-extrusion (bio)printing of soft hydrogels has been introduced under the name of Freeform Reversible Embedding of Suspended Hydrogels (FRESH). The most common FRESH bath contains gelatin as the main compound and low concentrations of crosslinker(s) (whose nature depends on the hydrogel) for the initiation of an in-situ pre-crosslinking process during printing. In the case of sodium alginate (SA)-based hydrogels ionically crosslinked via calcium chloride (CaCl2), the crosslinker percentage in the gelatin bath is equal to ~10 mM, usually combined with a post-crosslinking at higher concentrations. However, according to the…

In this study, inspired by the components of cartilage matrix, a photo-cross-linked extracellular matrix (ECM) bioink composed of modified proteins and polysaccharides was presented, including gelatin methacrylate, hyaluronic acid methacrylate, and chondroitin sulfate methacrylate. The systematic experiments were performed, including morphology, swelling, degradation, mechanical and rheological tests, printability analysis, biocompatibility and chondrogenic differentiation characterization, and RNA sequencing (RNA-seq). The results indicated that the photo-cross-linked ECM hydrogels possessed suitable degradation rate and excellent mechanical properties, and the three-dimensional (3D) bioprinted ECM scaffolds obtained favorable shape fidelity and improved the basic properties, biological properties, and chondrogenesis of synovium-derived MSCs (SMSCs). The strong…

Calcium phosphate cement (CPC) is widely used in orthopedics, dentistry and spine surgery because of its excellent biocompatibility, osteoconductivity, arbitrary shaping and self-setting ability. However, slow degradation rate of CPC decreases its bone regeneration efficacy. Herein, poly (lactic co-glycolic acid) microspheres (PLGAm) and wollastonite (WS) were mixed with CPC powder to prepare CPC composite pastes, and then the composite pastes were perfused into poly (lactic co-glycolic acid) network (PLGAnw) to construct composite bone repair materials. The degradation of PLGAnw generated interconnected macropores with the short side of about 468 μm along horizontal axis and the long side of about 785…

Porcelain pastes (PlotPastes) were formulated to be used on an additive manufacturing (AM) process (material extrusion) process, primarily robocasting (R3D) technique. The material morphological and thermal characteristics were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential thermal analysis (DTA) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The rheology and the electrical potential of the ceramic particles were also studied to select and adequate the porcelain paste properties to the R3D AM technique. It was found that shifting the pH values to acidic, the surface charge of the particles changes and increases the pastes viscosity due to agglomeration effects. This behaviour was exploited to optimize…

An enzyme-immobilized platform for biocatalysis was developed through 3D printing of a hydrogel ink comprising dimethacrylate-functionalized Pluronic F127 (F127-DMA) and sodium alginate (Alg) with laccase that can be done at ambient temperature, followed by UV-induced cross-linking. Laccase is an enzyme that can degrade azo dyes and various toxic organic pollutants. The fiber diameter, pore distance, and surface-to-volume ratio of the laccase-immobilized and 3D-printed hydrogel constructs were varied to determine their effects on the catalytic activity of the immobilized enzyme. Among the three geometrical designs investigated, the 3D-printed hydrogel constructs with flower-like geometry exhibited better catalytic performance than those with cubic…

Cervical atresia is a rare congenital Müllerian duct anomaly that manifests as the absence or deformed nonfunctional presence of the cervix. Herein, a multi-layered biodegradable stent is fabricated using a homogeneous blend of silk fibroin with polycaprolactone using hexafluoroisopropanol as a common solution. Briefly, a concentric cylinder of 3D honeycomb layer is sandwiched within electrospun sheets for fixing at the cervico-uterine junction to pave the way of cervical reconstruction. An average length of 40 mm with 3 mm diameter is fabricated for the hybrid stent design. SEM evidences an evenly distributed pore architecture of the electrospun layer, and mechanical characterization…

Insect-based food was fabricated by 3D printing of edible insect inks (cricket; CK or silkworm; SW) aiming to produce an alternative and sustainable food with high protein for a variety of consumers. CK and SW of 30% (w/v) together with 5%(w/v) sodium alginate can be 3D-printed into several designed geometries with fine resolution. 4D shape transformation as triggered by thermal stimuli at 80 °C of the printed insect-based objects was found to be varied with infill angle and infill pattern. The ability to form the CK/SW bilayer structure of which shape transformation upon thermal dehydration was similar to that of…