Click Chemistry-Based Injectable Hydrogels and Bioprinting Inks for Tissue Engineering Applications

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Chemical Biology
• Regenerative Medicine

Background:

• Tissue engineering requires biomaterials that are biocompatible, rapidly reproducible, biodegradable, and capable of forming complex 3D structures.
• Click chemistry provides multifunctional hydrogels ideal for tissue engineering and 3D bioprinting due to instant gelation and excellent cell encapsulation capabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• This review highlights recent advancements in click chemistry-based hydrogels for tissue engineering and 3D bioprinting applications.
• Focuses on various click chemistry reactions, excluding enzyme-based methods, for developing sophisticated biomaterials.

Main Methods:

• Review of literature on click chemistry reactions including Diels-Alder, strain-promoted azide-alkyne cycloaddition, thiol-ene, and oxime reactions.
• Analysis of hydrogel formation, printability, and cell viability in the context of 3D bioprinting.

Main Results:

• Click chemistry hydrogels form spontaneously, efficiently encapsulating live cells with high viability.
• Integration of click chemistry with 3D bioprinting allows for the high-resolution fabrication of 3D tissue constructs using injectable, biocompatible hydrogels.

Conclusions:

• Click chemistry reactions are highly promising for synthesizing bioinks and creating 3D tissue constructs.
• Further research is needed to address limitations and challenges for broader application in tissue engineering and 3D bioinks.
• Future applications include in situ 3D bioprinting for tissue and organ regeneration.