Bioprinting of human dermal microtissues precursors as building blocks for endogenousin vitroconnective tissue manufacturing

• Published in: Biofabrication 2024-04, Vol.16 (3)
• Main Authors: Scalzone, Annachiara, Imparato, Giorgia, Urciuolo, Francesco, Netti, Paolo A
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1758-5090
• DOI: 10.1088/1758-5090/ad3aa5

The advent of 3D bioprinting technologies in tissue engineering has unlocked the potential to fabricatein vitrotissue models, overcoming the constraints associated with the shape limitations of preformed scaffolds. However, achieving an accurate mimicry of complex tissue microenvironments, encompassing cellular and biochemical components, and orchestrating their supramolecular assembly to form hierarchical structures while maintaining control over tissue formation, is crucial for gaining deeper insights into tissue repair and regeneration. Building upon our expertise in developing competent three-dimensional tissue equivalents (e.g. skin, gut, cervix), we established a two-step bottom-up approach involving the dynamic assembly of microtissue precursors (μTPs) to generate macroscopic functional tissue composed of cell-secreted extracellular matrix (ECM). To enhance precision and scalability, we integrated extrusion-based bioprinting technology into our established paradigm to automate, control and guide the coherent assembly ofμTPs into predefined shapes. Compared to cell-aggregated bioink, ourμTPs represent a functional unit where cells are embedded in their specific ECM.μTPs were derived from human dermal fibroblasts dynamically seeded onto gelatin-based microbeads. After 9 days,μTPs were suspended (50% v/v) in Pluronic-F127 (30% w/v) (µTP:P30), and the obtained formulation was loaded as bioink into the syringe of the Dr.INVIVO-4D6 extrusion based bioprinter.µTP:P30 bioink showed shear-thinning behavior and temperature-dependent viscosity (gel atT> 30 °C), ensuringµTPs homogenous dispersion within the gel and optimal printability. The bioprinting involved extruding several geometries (line, circle, and square) into Pluronic-F127 (40% w/v) (P40) support bath, leveraging its shear-recovery property. P40 effectively held the bioink throughout and after the bioprinting procedure, untilµTPs fused into a continuous connective tissue.µTPs fusion dynamics was studied over 8 days of culture, while the resulting endogenous construct underwent 28 days culture. Histological, immunofluorescence analysis, and second harmonic generation reconstruction revealed an increase in endogenous collagen and fibronectin production within the bioprinted construct, closely resembling the composition of the native connective tissues.