Bioprinting is a process where biomaterials such as hydrogels are combined with cells and/or signaling molecules and are printed to create tissue-like structures. These structures can be used for drug screening, disease modeling, and tissue regeneration. In our lab, we derive bio-inks from natural and synthetic hydrogels, decellularized tissues, and minimally modified human tissue, such as peripheral blood. The developed bio-inks are tested for printability, post-printing cross-linking, and cell compatibility. TEST Lab has a state-of-the-art CELLINK bioprinter,which supports thermoplastic polymer printing, hydrogel printing, and their combination, to generate tissue-like structures with mechanical compatibility. Current projects in this area include the development of decellularized cartilage bio-inks and bioprinting to generate live cartilage and osteochondral tissue structures. Our goal is to extend this method to other musculoskeletal tissues and interfaces.
Recent Publications:
Golebiowska A, Nukavarapu SP. "Bio-inspired zonal-structured matrices for bone-cartilage interface engineering," Biofabrication, 2022.
Suvarnapathaki S, Nguyen MA, Wu X, Nukavarapu SP and Camci-Unal G. Synthesis and characterization of photocrosslinkable hydrogels from bovine skin gelatin, RSC Advances 9 (23), 13016-13025.
Mikael P, Golebiowska A, Kumbar SG, Nukavarapu SP. Evaluation of autologously derived biomaterials and stem cells for bone tissue engineering, Tissue Engineering A, 2020, In press
Mikael P, Hyun K, Nukavarapu SP (2018) “Hybrid Extracellular Matrix Design for Cartilage-Mediated Bone Regeneration” Journal of Biomedical Materials Research, Part-A, 106, 300-309. (featured on cover)