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Updated: Feb 20, 2026
Ceramic Omnidirectional Bioprinting in Cell-Laden Suspensions for the Generation of Bone Analogs
Published on: August 8, 2022
Collagenous matrix supported by a 3D-printed scaffold for osteogenic differentiation of dental pulp cells
Farahnaz Fahimipour1, Erfan Dashtimoghadam2, Morteza Rasoulianboroujeni2
1Marquette University School of Dentistry, Milwaukee, WI 53233, USA; Dental Biomaterials Department, School of Dentistry, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Objective:
A systematic characterization of hybrid scaffolds, fabricated based on combinatorial additive manufacturing technique and freeze-drying method, is presented as a new platform for osteoblastic differentiation of dental pulp cells (DPCs).
Methods:
The scaffolds were consisted of a collagenous matrix embedded in a 3D-printed beta-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) as the mineral phase. The developed construct design was intended to achieve mechanical robustness owing to 3D-printed β-TCP scaffold, and biologically active 3D cell culture matrix pertaining to the Collagen extracellular matrix. The β-TCP precursor formulations were investigated for their flow-ability at various temperatures, which optimized for fabrication of 3D printed scaffolds with interconnected porosity. The hybrid constructs were characterized by 3D laser scanning microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and compressive strength testing.
Results:
The in vitro characterization of scaffolds revealed that the hybrid β-TCP/Collagen constructs offer superior DPCs proliferation and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity compared to the 3D-printed β-TCP scaffold over three weeks. Moreover, it was found that the incorporation of TCP into the Collagen matrix improves the ALP activity.
Significance:
The presented results converge to suggest the developed 3D-printed β-TCP/Collagen hybrid constructs as a new platform for osteoblastic differentiation of DPCs for craniomaxillofacial bone regeneration.
