Formulation and Characterization of Collagen-based Bioinks for 3D Bioprinting

Professor: Lawrence Bonassar

Project Description: Bioprinting, or the use of 3D printing technology to produce scaffolds and cellularized tissue constructs, is becoming prominent in the tissue engineering and regenerative medicine fields. Collagen, a natural polymer predominant in almost all biological tissues, is a promising bioink, or printing material, due to its biocompatibility and temperature-dependent gelation. However, most collagen-based constructs do not exhibit high printability or robust mechanical properties. Therefore, the objective of this project is to develop a formulation of collagen which can be bioprinted to produce constructs with high shape fidelity and mechanical properties. A student working on this project will investigate how changing properties such as pH and collagen concentration impacts the rate of gelation and printability of the bioink and the mechanical properties of the printed construct.