121
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2018
S. Gerecht (ed.), Biophysical Regulation of Vascular Differentiation and
Assembly, Biological and Medical Physics, Biomedical Engineering,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99319-5_5
Chapter 5
3D Printing Technology for Vascularization
Enoch Yeung, Pooja Yesantharao, Chin Siang Ong, and Narutoshi Hibino
5.1 Introduction
The paradigm shift from therapeutic to regenerative medicine over the past few
decades has prompted the advancement of technologies that can be used to treat
organ failure. Since the first organ transplant surgery in the 1950s, a kidney transplant between identical twins [21], regenerative medicine techniques have been
used to restore tissue function and repair diseased organs. Within the realm of
regenerative medicine, “tissue engineering is an interdisciplinary field that applies
the principles of engineering and the life sciences toward the development of biological substitutes that restore, maintain, or improve tissue function” (quote from
[31]). The goal of tissue engineering is to produce constructs with the capacity for
long-term survival. Thus, ensuring a robust capillary supply to these tissue constructs is of paramount importance. However, most tissue-engineered fabrication
techniques that require manual processing procedures are limited by the inconsistency in the microstructure construction. Due to such limitations in the precise control of the material behavior and internal structure of the construction, these
techniques were unable to reach the ultimate goal of fabricating persistently viable
engineered tissue. However, newer 3D printing technologies allow for precise and
delicate manipulation of printed materials and the printing trajectory, leading to
refined printed grafts.
3D engineered constructs enable cell adhesion, growth, and regeneration. Ideally
speaking, the scaffold, which forms the porous structure of the constructs, starts
degrading after implantation of the vascular constructs. This allows for the growth
and proliferation of the printed cells, thereby promoting new tissue formation and
restoration of tissue function [43]. The microstructure parameters of the printed
E. Yeung · P. Yesantharao · C. S. Ong · N. Hibino (*)
Division of Cardiac Surgery, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD, USA
e-mail: nhibino1@jhmi.edu
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2018
S. Gerecht (ed.), Biophysical Regulation of Vascular Differentiation and
Assembly, Biological and Medical Physics, Biomedical Engineering,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99319-5_5
Chapter 5
3D Printing Technology for Vascularization
Enoch Yeung, Pooja Yesantharao, Chin Siang Ong, and Narutoshi Hibino
5.1 Introduction
The paradigm shift from therapeutic to regenerative medicine over the past few
decades has prompted the advancement of technologies that can be used to treat
organ failure. Since the first organ transplant surgery in the 1950s, a kidney transplant between identical twins [21], regenerative medicine techniques have been
used to restore tissue function and repair diseased organs. Within the realm of
regenerative medicine, “tissue engineering is an interdisciplinary field that applies
the principles of engineering and the life sciences toward the development of biological substitutes that restore, maintain, or improve tissue function” (quote from
[31]). The goal of tissue engineering is to produce constructs with the capacity for
long-term survival. Thus, ensuring a robust capillary supply to these tissue constructs is of paramount importance. However, most tissue-engineered fabrication
techniques that require manual processing procedures are limited by the inconsistency in the microstructure construction. Due to such limitations in the precise control of the material behavior and internal structure of the construction, these
techniques were unable to reach the ultimate goal of fabricating persistently viable
engineered tissue. However, newer 3D printing technologies allow for precise and
delicate manipulation of printed materials and the printing trajectory, leading to
refined printed grafts.
3D engineered constructs enable cell adhesion, growth, and regeneration. Ideally
speaking, the scaffold, which forms the porous structure of the constructs, starts
degrading after implantation of the vascular constructs. This allows for the growth
and proliferation of the printed cells, thereby promoting new tissue formation and
restoration of tissue function [43]. The microstructure parameters of the printed
E. Yeung · P. Yesantharao · C. S. Ong · N. Hibino (*)
Division of Cardiac Surgery, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD, USA
e-mail: nhibino1@jhmi.edu