Novel additive manufactured scaffolds for tissue engineered trachea research.

Conclusions: This study demonstrates proof of concept for controlled manufacturing methods that utilize novel tailored biopolymers (3D photocuring technology) or conventional bioresorbable polymers (fused deposition modeling, FDM) for macroscopic and microscopic geometry control. The manufactured scaffolds could be suitable for tissue engineering research.

Objectives: To design novel trachea scaffold prototypes for tissue engineering purposes, and to fabricate them by additive manufacturing.

Biodegradable and bioactive porous scaffold structures prepared using fused deposition modeling.

Three-dimensional printing (3DP) refers to a group of additive manufacturing techniques that can be utilized in tissue engineering applications. Fused deposition modeling (FDM) is a 3DP method capable of using common thermoplastic polymers. However, the scope of materials applicable for FDM has not been fully recognized.