Application of instant assembly of collagen to bioprint cardiac tissues

Advancing cardiac tissue engineering requires innovative fabrication techniques, including 3D bioprinting and tissue maturation, to enable the generation of new muscle for repairing or replacing damaged heart tissue. Recent advances in tissue engineering have highlighted the need for rapid, high-res...

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Main Authors: Hugh Xiao, Zixie Liang, Xiangyu Gong, Seyma Nayir Jordan, Alejandro Rossello-Martinez, Ilhan Gokhan, Xia Li, Zhang Wen, Sein Lee, Stuart G. Campbell, Yibing Qyang, Michael Mak
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AIP Publishing LLC 2025-06-01
Series:APL Bioengineering
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/5.0252746
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author Hugh Xiao
Zixie Liang
Xiangyu Gong
Seyma Nayir Jordan
Alejandro Rossello-Martinez
Ilhan Gokhan
Xia Li
Zhang Wen
Sein Lee
Stuart G. Campbell
Yibing Qyang
Michael Mak
author_facet Hugh Xiao
Zixie Liang
Xiangyu Gong
Seyma Nayir Jordan
Alejandro Rossello-Martinez
Ilhan Gokhan
Xia Li
Zhang Wen
Sein Lee
Stuart G. Campbell
Yibing Qyang
Michael Mak
author_sort Hugh Xiao
collection DOAJ
description Advancing cardiac tissue engineering requires innovative fabrication techniques, including 3D bioprinting and tissue maturation, to enable the generation of new muscle for repairing or replacing damaged heart tissue. Recent advances in tissue engineering have highlighted the need for rapid, high-resolution bioprinting methods that preserve cell viability and maintain structural fidelity. Traditional collagen-based bioinks gel slowly, limiting their use in bioprinting. Here, we implement TRACE (tunable rapid assembly of collagenous elements), a macromolecular crowding-driven bioprinting technique that enables the immediate gelation of collagen bioinks infused with cells. This overcomes the need for extended incubation, allowing for direct bioprinting of engineered cardiac tissues with high fidelity. Unlike methods that rely on high-concentration acidic collagen or fibrin for gelation, TRACE achieves rapid bioink stabilization without altering the biochemical composition. This ensures greater versatility in bioink selection while maintaining functional tissue outcomes. Additionally, agarose slurry provides stable structural support, preventing tissue collapse while allowing nutrient diffusion. This approach better preserves complex tissue geometries during culture than gelatin-based support baths or polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) molds. Our results demonstrate that TRACE enables the bioprinting of structurally stable cardiac tissues with high resolution. By supporting the fabrication of biomimetic tissues, TRACE represents a promising advancement in bioprinting cardiac models and other engineered tissues.
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spelling doaj-art-58f2001bae53406f95d91cf4dcaa04752025-08-20T03:31:06ZengAIP Publishing LLCAPL Bioengineering2473-28772025-06-0192026124026124-1210.1063/5.0252746Application of instant assembly of collagen to bioprint cardiac tissuesHugh Xiao0Zixie Liang1Xiangyu Gong2Seyma Nayir Jordan3Alejandro Rossello-Martinez4Ilhan Gokhan5Xia Li6Zhang Wen7Sein Lee8Stuart G. Campbell9Yibing Qyang10Michael Mak11Department of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USAAdvancing cardiac tissue engineering requires innovative fabrication techniques, including 3D bioprinting and tissue maturation, to enable the generation of new muscle for repairing or replacing damaged heart tissue. Recent advances in tissue engineering have highlighted the need for rapid, high-resolution bioprinting methods that preserve cell viability and maintain structural fidelity. Traditional collagen-based bioinks gel slowly, limiting their use in bioprinting. Here, we implement TRACE (tunable rapid assembly of collagenous elements), a macromolecular crowding-driven bioprinting technique that enables the immediate gelation of collagen bioinks infused with cells. This overcomes the need for extended incubation, allowing for direct bioprinting of engineered cardiac tissues with high fidelity. Unlike methods that rely on high-concentration acidic collagen or fibrin for gelation, TRACE achieves rapid bioink stabilization without altering the biochemical composition. This ensures greater versatility in bioink selection while maintaining functional tissue outcomes. Additionally, agarose slurry provides stable structural support, preventing tissue collapse while allowing nutrient diffusion. This approach better preserves complex tissue geometries during culture than gelatin-based support baths or polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) molds. Our results demonstrate that TRACE enables the bioprinting of structurally stable cardiac tissues with high resolution. By supporting the fabrication of biomimetic tissues, TRACE represents a promising advancement in bioprinting cardiac models and other engineered tissues.http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/5.0252746
spellingShingle Hugh Xiao
Zixie Liang
Xiangyu Gong
Seyma Nayir Jordan
Alejandro Rossello-Martinez
Ilhan Gokhan
Xia Li
Zhang Wen
Sein Lee
Stuart G. Campbell
Yibing Qyang
Michael Mak
Application of instant assembly of collagen to bioprint cardiac tissues
APL Bioengineering
title Application of instant assembly of collagen to bioprint cardiac tissues
title_full Application of instant assembly of collagen to bioprint cardiac tissues
title_fullStr Application of instant assembly of collagen to bioprint cardiac tissues
title_full_unstemmed Application of instant assembly of collagen to bioprint cardiac tissues
title_short Application of instant assembly of collagen to bioprint cardiac tissues
title_sort application of instant assembly of collagen to bioprint cardiac tissues
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/5.0252746
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