Biocompatible fluorescent silk fibroin bioink for digital light processing 3D printing

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Tissue Engineering
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Chemically modified silk fibroin (SF) is utilized in 3D bioprinting for tissue engineering due to its biocompatibility.
• Fluorescent silk fibroin (FSF) from transgenic silkworms offers unique fluorescence properties for biomedical applications.
• The fabrication of fluorescent hydrogels from FSF remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a digital light processing (DLP) printable bioink from chemically modified FSF.
• To characterize the properties and potential applications of this novel fluorescent bioink.

Main Methods:

• Covalent conjugation of FSF with glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) to create a printable bioink.
• 3D bioprinting of various complex structures using the fabricated bioink.
• Evaluation of the physical properties, fluorescence retention, and biocompatibility of the resulting hydrogel.

Main Results:

• Fabrication of a DLP-printable bioink from chemically modified FSF (FSGMA).
• The FSGMA hydrogel exhibited similar physical properties to non-fluorescent SGMA hydrogel.
• FSGMA hydrogel demonstrated retained fluorescence and excellent biocompatibility.
• Successful printing of intricate structures including organs and body parts.

Conclusions:

• Chemically modified FSF can be fabricated into a 3D DLP printable bioink.
• The resulting FSGMA hydrogel is suitable for encapsulated cell tracking and in vivo scaffold degradation monitoring.
• This 3D printable FSF bioink shows significant potential for biomedical applications.