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Updated: Feb 14, 2026

Manipulating Living Cells to Construct Stable 3D Cellular Assembly Without Artificial Scaffold
Published on: October 26, 2018
3D cellular structures and co-cultures formed through the contactless magnetic manipulation of cells on adherent
Abdel Rahman Abdel Fattah1, Sarah Mishriki, Tobias Kammann
1Department of Mechanical Engineering, McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4L7, Canada. ikpuri@mcmaster.ca.
Abstract:
A magnet array is employed to manipulate diamagnetic cells that are contained in paramagnetic medium to demonstrate for the first time the contactless bioprinting of three-dimensional (3D) cellular structures and co-cultures of breast cancer MCF-7 and endothelial HUVEC at prescribed locations on tissue culture treated well plates. Sequential seeding of different cell lines and the spatial displacement of the magnet array creates co-cultured cellular structures within a well without using physically intrusive well inserts. Both monotypic and co-culture experiments produce morphologically rich 3D cell structures that are otherwise absent in regular monolayer cell cultures. The magnetic contactless bioprinting of cells provides further insight into cell behaviour, invasion strategies and transformations that are useful for potential applications in drug screening, 3D cell culture formation and tissue engineering.
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