3D bioprinting has been increasingly employed in skin tissue engineering for manufacturing living constructs with three-dimensional spatial precision and controlled architecture. There is however, a bottleneck in the tunability of bioinks to address specific biocompatibility challenges, functional traits and printability. Here we report on a traditional gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA) based bioink, tuned by addition of an ulvan type polysaccharide, isolated from a cultivated source of a specific Australian Ulvacean macroalgae (Ul84). Ul84 is a sulfate- and rhamnose-rich polysaccharide, resembling mammalian glycosaminoglycans that are involved in wound healing and tissue matrix structure and function. Printable bioinks were developed by addition of…
Articular cartilage injuries experienced at an early age can lead to the development of osteoarthritis later in life. In situ 3D printing is an exciting and innovative bio-fabrication technology that enables the surgeon to deliver tissue- engineering techniques at the time and location of need. We have created a hand- held 3D printing device (Biopen) that allows the simultaneous co-axial extrusion of bioscaffold and cultured cells directly into the cartilage defect in vivo in a single session surgery. This pilot study assesses the ability of the Biopen to repair a full thickness chondral defect and the early outcomes in cartilage…