Biopixlar transfer membrane bioprinting
Release you tissues from the confines of the petri dish
Biopixlar has been established as a powerful tool for building physiologically relevant biological tissues in 3D, however it is not only the printed structure that is important. To release the tissue constructs from the confines of a petri-dish, the substrate on which your tissue is printed plays a significant role. Here, we present some of the opportunities to create biological tissues on microporous transferable membranes using Biopixlar.
Microporous membranes have many advantages that make them an interesting alternative to conventional cell culture dishes.
- Increased access to nutrients for the bioprinted cells, leading to improved cell and tissue viability.
- The ability to transfer bioprinted tissues away from the confines the petri dish makes it a powerful tool for research and therapeutic development.
- Variations in material properties can lead to differences in cell-surface interaction, offering a way to tune the properties and behavior of the bioprinted tissues.
One of the most important features of the microporous membranes comes from the ability to easily excise the membrane, conveying transferability whilst retaining the tissue intact for later use. This greatly increases the flexibility and the potential usage of the bioprinted tissues in research, whether it be for drug development, fundamental biological research, or even in clinical studies. [1,2,3]
Contact us to learn more about the opportunities that Biopixlar membrane bioprinting offers for research and therapeutic development.
Membrane bioprinting principle
The membrane bioprinting procedure consists of three separate steps. The first step is to bioprint cells into the desired tissue architecture on the appropriate porous membrane. The source of the cells can either be from culture, or obtained directly from a patient.
Once the cells have been bioprinted, the membrane can incubated to allow for the tissue to develop. Here, the microporous structure of the membrane enables nutrient access from both sides of the tissue. After tissue maturation, the membrane could be excised for use in research or therapy.
The use of small, easily transferable membranes, has been successful demonstrated for bioprinting of tissues using Biopixlar. This opens up exciting opportunities to develop engineered tissue products for therapeutic purposes. Fluicell is actively pursuing and optimizing bioprinting on multiple therapeutically relevant materials such as, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) membranes, cross linked ECM-like gels, as well as using human amniotic membranes. Bioprinting on substrates such as these, serves as a key feature in Fluicell’s partnership program for regenerative medicine research.
Membrane bioprinting procedure
- Bioprinting tissues on transferable members is straightforward using the Biopixlar platform. With Biopixlar’s microfluidic bioprinting technique, you can create any desired shape by direct cell printing in culture media, without using any bioink.
- The bioprinting procedure is directly monitored using Biopixlar’s built-in microscope unit, allowing you to directly control and follow the process in real time at the cellular level.
- The created tissue is readily accessed after the completed bioprinting procedure and can easily be excised and transferred for further use after tissue maturation.
Tailored tissues on membranes
Biopixlar can be used to create a wide variety of shapes and structures and can be combined with many different membrane materials, providing an array of design and application possibilities. Here, we provide examples of microtissues, bioprinted on a semipermeable membrane, a type of porous scaffold that has been used in both in vivo and clinical studies.
Biopixlar has also been used for bioprinting tissues on several other types of membrane materials, including cross linked ECM-like gels and human amniotic membranes.
Single layer pattern
Two different cell types (HaCaT in blue and SK-MEL-28 in red) printed in a square shape single layer on a PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) membrane. The cells are fluorescently labeled to enable easy identification. The images show the tissue composition right after printing and after 24 hours of incubation.
Membrane type: PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate)
Cell types: HaCaT / SK-MEL-28
Multilayer pattern
A multilayer construct built using a bottom cell layer consisting of 3T3-J2 fibroblasts and a top layer consisting of the two different cell types HaCaT (blue) and SK-MEL-28 (red), printed in a square shape. The entire structure is created on a porous PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) membrane. The upper layer of cells is fluorescently labeled to enable easy identification. The images show the tissue composition right after printing and after 24 and 48 hours of incubation.
Membrane: PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate)
Cell types: 3T3-J2 (bottom layer), HaCaT / SK-MEL-28 (top layer)