High-resolution 3D printing for load-bearing, smart and tissue regenerative implants

Recent advances in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering (TE) have opened the way for novel, more sustainable treatment strategies. Inspired by developmental biology and based on principles of engineering, TE aims to combine cells with biological cues and/or biomaterials in a 3D construct that leads to de novo tissue formation. However, the translation of scientific results into a clinical product is still limited with currently only a few products on the market. More medical device-compatible manufacturing processes and improved biomimicry are two substantial areas that need improvement to bridge the gap between bench and bedside. To create implants which are clinically relevant, the field needs new enabling technologies. In this regard, biofabrication technologies hold great promise to more robustly develop constructs that are closely related to the native tissues. These technologies focus on the automated generation of biologically functional products with a defined structural organisation of living cells or cell aggregates, bioactive molecules, biomaterials or cell-material hybrids. Melt electrowriting (MEW) is one such exciting emerging technology and is the first one that enables accurate 3D printing with features below 10 μm using known processes compatible with medical device manufacture. This project uses MEW to fabricate highly complex micro-scale materials that have controlled compression and decompression in a load-bearing environment. It is hypothesised that such smart materials can serve as a basis for the development of implants that can more closely mimic the biomechanical behaviour of the native tissue.