A vertical additive-lathe printing system for the fabrication of tubular constructs using gelatin methacryloyl hydrogel.

Reproducing both the mechanical and biological performance of native blood vessels remains an ongoing challenge in vascular tissue engineering. Additive-lathe printing offers an attractive method of fabricating long tubular constructs as a potential vascular graft for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Printing hydrogels onto rotating horizontal mandrels often leads to sagging, resulting in poor and variable mechanical properties.

A modified 3D printer as a hybrid bioprinting-electrospinning system for use in vascular tissue engineering applications.

There is a high demand for small diameter vascular grafts having mechanical and biological properties similar to that of living tissues. Tissue-engineered vascular grafts using current methods have often failed due to the mismatch of mechanical properties between the implanted graft and living tissues. To address this limitation, a hybrid bioprinting-electrospinning system is developed for vascular tissue engineering applications.

Design and development of a nozzle-free electrospinning device for the high-throughput production of biomaterial nanofibers.

This technical note provides a step-by-step guide for the design and construction of a temperature-controlled nozzle-free electrospinning device. The equipment uses a rotating mandrel partially immersed within a polymer solution to produce fibers in an upward motion by inducing the formation of multiple Taylor cones and subsequently multi-jetting out of an electrified open surface. Free-surface electrospinning can overcome limitations and drawbacks associated with single and multi-nozzle spinneret configurations, such as low yield, limited production capacity, nonuniform electric field distribution, and clogging.

Recent advancements in the bioprinting of vascular grafts.

Recent advancements in the bioinks and three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting methods used to fabricate vascular constructs are summarized herein. Critical biomechanical properties required to fabricate an ideal vascular graft are highlighted, as well as various testing methods have been outlined to evaluate the bio-fabricated grafts as per the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and International Organization for Standardization (ISO) guidelines. Occlusive artery disease and cardiovascular disease are the major causes of death globally.