A Comprehensive Assessment on the Pivotal Role of Hydrogels in Scaffold-Based Bioprinting

Matangi Parimala Ratnamani, Xinping Zhang, Hongjun Wang

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

9 Scopus citations

Abstract

The past a few decades have seen exponential growth in the field of regenerative medicine. What began as extirpative (complete tissue or organ removal), with little regard to the effects of tissue loss and/or disfigurement, has evolved towards fabricating engineered tissues using personalized living cells (e.g., stem cells), and customizing a matrix or structural organization to support and guide tissue development. Biofabrication, largely accomplished through three-dimensional (3D) printing technology, provides precise, controlled, and layered assemblies of cells and biomaterials, emulating the heterogenous microenvironment of the in vivo tissue architecture. This review provides a concise framework for the bio-manufacturing process and addresses the contributions of hydrogels to biological modeling. The versatility of hydrogels in bioprinting is detailed along with an extensive elaboration of their physical, mechanical, and biological properties, as well as their assets and limitations in bioprinting. The scope of various hydrogels in tissue formation has been discussed through the case studies of biofabricated 3D constructs in order to provide the readers with a glimpse into the barrier-breaking accomplishments of biomedical sciences. In the end, the restraints of bioprinting itself are discussed, accompanied with the identification of available engineering strategies to overcome them.

Original languageEnglish
Article number239
JournalGels
Volume8
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 2022

Keywords

  • 3D bioprinting
  • bioprinting limitation
  • hydrogel characterization
  • hydrogel matrix
  • layer-by-layer assemblage
  • living cells
  • strategies

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