3D bioprinting technology for modeling vascular diseases and its application

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Vascular Biology
• Regenerative Medicine

Background:

• In vitro vascular disease models are crucial for drug screening and mechanistic studies.
• Bioprinting offers high-resolution 3D capabilities for recapitulating native tissue structures and physiological characteristics.
• Blood vessels exhibit complex layered structures and respond to mechanical stimuli like shear stress.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the physiology of blood vessels and pathophysiology of vascular diseases.
• To discuss recent advances in fabricating in vitro 3D vascular disease models using bioprinting.
• To address challenges and future perspectives for clinical translation of bioprinted vascular models.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on vascular disease modeling and bioprinting techniques.
• Analysis of bioprinting strategies for incorporating cellular components, geometrical properties, and mechanical stimulation.
• Discussion of specific vascular diseases including atherosclerosis, thrombosis, aneurysms, and tumor angiogenesis.

Main Results:

• 3D bioprinting enables the creation of sophisticated vascular models that mimic native tissue complexity.
• Bioprinted models can incorporate multiple cell types, structural features (curvature, branching), and mechanical cues (shear stress, pulsatile pressure).
• Recent advances have improved the fidelity of in vitro vascular disease models.

Conclusions:

• Bioprinting holds significant potential for developing advanced in vitro models of vascular diseases.
• These models can enhance drug screening efficacy and mechanistic understanding of vascular pathologies.
• Further development is needed to overcome current challenges and facilitate clinical translation for therapeutic interventions.