3D vector field-guided toolpathing for 3D bioprinting.

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Tissue Engineering
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Biological tissues exhibit complex fibrous microarchitectures where fiber orientation dictates structure-function relationships.
• Directional imaging techniques like diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DTMRI) provide 3D fiber orientation maps.
• Integrating directional imaging data into engineered tissues is a significant challenge in current research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an algorithmic framework for processing DTMRI data to guide 3D bioprinting of aligned fibrous structures.
• To enable the creation of accurate, in vitro models of native tissue architecture.

Main Methods:

• The NAATIV3 (Nonplanar, Architecture-Aligned Toolpathing for In Vitro 3D bioprinting) framework was developed.
• NAATIV3 processes DTMRI data to map, reduce, and select printable fiber orientations.
• Output G-code files were used for 3D bioprinting fibered models.

Main Results:

• DTMRI data from a human left ventricle was successfully used to generate 3D fibered models.
• The NAATIV3 framework demonstrated high accuracy in replicating native fiber orientations.
• The study presents a novel method for translating complex imaging data into printable architectural designs.

Conclusions:

• NAATIV3 provides a robust computational framework for biofabrication guided by directional imaging.
• This technology has broad potential for creating patient-specific tissue models for research and regenerative medicine.
• The framework is generalizable to various organs, disease states, and potentially other bioengineering fields.