Numerical modeling of hydrogel scaffold anisotropy during extrusion-based 3D printing for tissue engineering.

Extrusion-based 3D printing is a widely utilized tool in tissue engineering, offering precise 3D control of bioinks to construct organ-sized biomaterial objects with hierarchically organized cellularized scaffolds. Topological properties in flowing polymers are determined by macromolecule conformation, namely orientation and stretch degree. We utilized the micro-macro approach to describe hydrogel macromolecule orientation during extrusion, offering a two-scale fluid behavior description.

Contactless mechanical stimulation of tissue engineered constructs: Development and validation of an air-pulse device.

Objective: Tissue engineering (TE) is the study and development of biological substitutes to restore, maintain or improve tissue function. Tissue engineered constructs (TECs) still present differences in mechanical and biological properties compared to native tissue. Mechanotransduction is the process through which mechanical stimulation triggers proliferation, apoptosis, and extracellular matrix synthesis, among other cell activities.