High throughput direct 3D bioprinting in multiwell plates

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Tissue Engineering
• Biotechnology

Background:

• High throughput production of 3D tissue scaffolds in multiwell plates is critical for biological and medical applications.
• Existing 3D bioprinting methods face limitations in speed and scalability for large-scale applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present an integrated 3D bioprinting platform for high throughput, in situ fabrication of complex 3D biomedical samples.
• To demonstrate the capability of the platform for creating biomimetic tissue scaffolds with tunable properties and reproducibility.
• To validate the platform's utility in drug response assays and dual-cell type tissue fabrication.

Main Methods:

• Development of a high throughput 3D bioprinter (HT-3DP) utilizing microscale continuous optical printing.
• Fabrication of 3D tissue scaffolds with controlled spatial geometries and mechanical properties in multiwell plate formats.
• In situ drug response assay using hepatocellular carcinoma 3D tissue scaffolds and doxorubicin.
• Printing of dual-cell type constructs involving hepatocellular carcinoma and human umbilical vein endothelial cells.

Main Results:

• Successful high throughput, in situ fabrication of complex 3D biomedical samples in multiwell plates.
• Demonstration of constructs with biomimetic significance, tunable mechanical properties, and reproducibility.
• Functional drug response assay performed on 3D bioprinted hepatocellular carcinoma tissue scaffolds.
• Successful fabrication of dual-cell type 3D tissue models.

Conclusions:

• The developed HT-3DP platform significantly advances 3D bioprinting capabilities for high throughput applications.
• Enables rapid generation of in vitro 3D tissue models within conventional multiwell plates.
• Facilitates high throughput preclinical drug screening and disease modeling.