3D Bioprinters – The Modular Solution for Tissue Engineering from GeSiM

GeSiM BioScaffold printers can be configured by numerous tools for different extrusion principles as well as optical components, like cameras and UV lamps.

The range of tools is continuously developing; please contact us for the latest catalogue. Bioinks and polymers with complex physical properties can be tested in advance for an optimum system configuration.

Always on board: Pneumatic Extruders

Cartridge Stirrer/ Mixing Head

Cell suspensions may tend to sediment over time, particularly when large cells are suspended in low-viscous bioinks. The 10mL pneumatic extruder can be topped with a cartridge stirrer: A rotating spiral ensures a good mix-up of low-viscous bioinks (for operation at room temperature).

Mechanical Piston Extruders

Mechanical piston extruders offer volumetric displacement dispensing at constant flow rate, independent on material properties and cartridge size. They are beneficial for…

• Prints of very low-viscous bioinks,
• Prints of highly visco-elastic thermoplastic materials (E.g. PLA/bioglass compounds),
• All biopolymers performing insufficiently with the pneumatic printing system,
• Precise mixing of two components from different cartridges (short pot-life), with mixing ratio adjustable by software.

All GeSiM piston extruders offer sophisticated start/stop routines to compensate hysteresis of elastic biopolymers for exact strand deposition.

The High-Temperature Piston Extruder (HT-Extruder) prints thermoplastics like PLA (Polylactic Acid) and ABS at temperatures up to 250°C. It comes with a 10 Millilitre stainless-steel cartridge and stainless steel nozzles. A two-zone heater avoids the temperature drop from the cartridge to the nozzle. Nozzles with diameter ranging from 100 Micrometers to 1,500 Micrometers are available.

The 50mL Syringe Extruder is the less complex counterpart of the HT-Extruder.  It operates at room temperature but takes disposable 50 Millilitre syringes for longer prints. Adapters for 30mL, 10mL and even smaller syringes are available.

A pair of GeSiM syringe extruders hooks up to mixing chambers when pre-print mixing of two materials in a single cartridge is not possible. The mixing chamber of the HT-Extruder heats up to 250°C, the mixing chamber of the 50mL syringe extruder operates at room temperature.

The BS5.x will be required to operate more than one HT-Extruder on the tool head.

PUREDYNE® Screw-Extruder

Core/Shell Extruder for coaxial printing of two materials

Soft matrices like Hydrogels are cell friendly materials but hard to print into stable 3D structures. The combination with more stiff thermoplastic scaffolds may cause biocompatibility issues. The pneumatic C/S-extruder (Core/Shell-extruder) for the BioScaffold printers allows simultaneous printing of two materials with different properties in a coaxial arrangement. The tool features a pair of nozzles – an inner core nozzle, surrounded by the outer shell nozzle. The print parameters can be set individually for both channels in order to match properties of the respective bioinks. Nozzle diameters range from 100 Micrometre to 5000 Micrometre.

[1]Akkineni, T. Ahlfeld, A. Lode and M. Gelinsky: A versatile method for combining different biopolymers in a core/shell fashion by 3D plotting to achieve mechanically robust constructs, IOP Publishing Ltd., Oct 2016

Centre for Translational Bone, Joint and Soft Tissue Research, Technische Universität Dresden

Nanolitre Pipetting Tools

The GeSiM bioprinters BS3.3 and BS5.x are available with the optional Nanolitre pipetting module. It transfers small liquid sample amounts from a 96 well micro titer plate to a defined locations on the target object during 3D printing.

Pipets for different volume range are available:

• Passive needles for syringe supported displacement dispensing. The lowest dispense volume is in the range of half a Microliter.
• The volume range between fifty Nanolitres and a few Microlitres is covered best by the solenoid dispense valve.
• Piezoelectric nozzles for free-flight micro drop dispensing (Viscosity limit around 10 mPa*s). The lowest dispense volume is in the range of 0.1 Nanolitres.

The innovative Twin-Tip-Pipettor operates two separate GeSiM piezoelectric nozzles on a swivel. For aspiration both nozzles dip into separate wells of a 96-well-plate. The droplets of both nozzles than hit each other and mix up on the target surface.

Heatable versions of the piezoelectric nozzles are available for liquids with higher but temperature dependent viscosity.

Curing/ Photopolymerization

GeSiM sells the Omnicure S1500 UV lamp with the BioScaffolder instruments. An optical fibre connects the lamp main unit with the optics on the print head. The Omnicure S1500 comes with replacable band width filters. It is a very powerful UV lamp for quick hardening of UV-curable bioinks.

Single wavelengths UV-LED pens are the cost-attractive alternative. They cover the range from 265nm to 405nm. A “Blue Pen” (450nm) is available as well.

Melt Electro Spinning-Writing (MEW)

The optional MEW module for the BioScaffold printers BS3.2 and BS5.x combines pneumatic extrusion and high-voltage induced fibre deposition for particular thermoplastic materials. Strand size and layer thickness come down below 100 Micrometres. Strand thicknesses of 10…20 Micrometres can be achieved from materials like PCL with a molecular weight of up to 50,000.

In contradiction to Melt Electrospinning (MES) Melt Electrospinning Writing deposits each fibre in a regular manner. CAD geometries can be printed to a certain extent. GeSiM bioprinters combine MEW with pneumatic extrusion for a single print. E.g. grids at macro scale can be added to thin meshes made by MEW, achieving mechanical stiffness as well as good conditions for cell adhesion with the same 3D object.

The MEW module extends the standard configuration of the instrument by a special tray with embedded electrode, a high-voltage generator and security measures (left). Four different materials are print and spun to make one object (right).

Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM)

FDM belongs to the oldest methods for 3D printing. Instead of refillable cartridges filaments of defined diameter supply the print head in a continuous manner. On the other hand, available filaments are mainly made for mechanical engineering, with limited biocompatibility.

Optional available FDM print heads for the BioScaffold printers BS3.3 and BS5.1 extend the capabilities of our instruments beyond “pure bioprinting”.

Powder Pipet (EPO 3378574)

Tiny amounts of granular solid materials can be added to 3D prints by the new powder pipet: It’s kind of a vacuum tweezer with a defined pore chip or micro basket on the foot side. It aspirates either single grains or a few micrograms from a reservoir and dispenses it on a target. The foot area of the powder pipet is customized for a particular granule and application.

A particular biopolymer is usually available with very different compositions, molecular weight and physical properties (melting points, viscoelasticity). Please download the Tools at a Glance brochure for more information. GeSiM is ready for print tests with your own bioink/ biopolymer. Please contact us for arrangements.

Plasma Pen

The Nadir Plasma Pen (developed and manufactured by Nadir S.r.l.) is an atmospheric plasma jet that allows the ionization of Argon gas by applying high voltage (HV) near the channel where the gas is flowing. It can be configured to each GeSiM bioprinter as individual tool.

Applications:

• Activating and cleaning the whole object porosity
• Sterilization with oxidative plasma during polymer printing
• Functionalization with a proper chemical precursor without solvents

Benefits:

• Reductive or oxidative plasma can be used to clean surfaces, remove organic dirt or polymeric layers
• Surfaces can be activated to improve adhesion of cells, printed material or different melted materials
• Inlet capillary for the introduction of vapour and aerosol precursors allows deposition of functionalities, coatings and nanocomposites

The Nadir Plasma Pen was developed and adapted to GeSiM products within the frame of the European FAST project. Please download the FAST brochure for more information.

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Please download the BioScaffolder brochure for more details on available tools or just contact us for full catalogue with all technical details and specs.

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Highest Flexibility for a Changing World

GeSiM instruments incorporate highest modularity. Even when acquired for a particular project, additonal tools for upcoming projects are available at affordable costs.

Our budget line BS3.3 Prime comes with a fix combination of tools, whereas BS3.3 and BS5.3 can be configured almost arbitrarily. Here we show popular setups, please visit the preceding tab “Print Tools” for more information or download the brochure below.

Hardware upgrades mostly can be done without a service visit of GeSiM engineers (Limited for BS3.3 Prime). GeSiM permanently developes new tools/modules, probably fitting to your personal BioScaffold printer.  The user software GeSiM Robotics reconfigures easily and reflects always the actual status when adding new hardware. Tool-related pieces of software can be added similar to the download of apps for your phone.

The GeSiM factory service is available for older BioScaffold printers as well as for retrofitting of BS3.3 Prime with fix configuration.

Particular applications may require tools for high pressure, high temperature, extremely thin strands and others:

The Multi-Material Printer: (1) Two syringe extruders with mixing head, (2) FDM print head, (3) Droplet dispenser/ UV-pen, (4) Multi-tool axis with Keyence layer tickness measurement, camera, plasma pen. Additional tools arranged on the work plate: (5) Stroboscopic camera for drop inspection, (6) Levelling table with substrate fixation. A sophisticated version in a closed cabinet with HEPA-filter; suited for applications in the field of polymer electronics

GeSiM Robotics

The user software of all our Bioprinters is called GeSiM Robotics. It is a flexible but intuitive software:

• Configuration and automatic alignment of print tools and print targets
• Quick test prints considering varying print parameters give best settings for a particular combination of cartridges, nozzles and biopolymers
• Optical monitoring of drop-on-demand pipets
• Replacement of cartridges/ nozzles on demand during a 3D print eliminates the risk of unsuccessful runs due to clogged nozzles and run out cartridges
• Planning and execution of batch processes (sequences) allows copies of a 3D structure or different separate 3D structures unattendedly.

Processing of External CAD Data

GeSiM Robotics supports STL and 3mf formats. An STL file describes triangulated surfaces in a three-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system. It is widely used for rapid prototyping, 3D printing and computer aided manufacturing.

The BioScaffold printer software defines internal scaffold- structures in between surfaces imported from a STL file. The 3mf format works similar but supports different objects in one file. It is the preferred data standard for multi-material scaffolds.

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Printing Life to Shape the Future

Beside of instrumentation, 3D printable materials are the next key to success in tissue engineering. Over the past decade research teams worldwide focused on tuning quite common materials like gelatine into 3D printable bioinks. Opposing specs like cell friendliness and mechanical stiffness have to combine for one product.

GeSiM bioprinters accompanies several of these groups, therefore contributing to the scientific progress. Like most bioprinters, GeSiM BioScaffold printers accept all commercially available bioinks, granules, powders, pastes, liquids and filaments.

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In order to offer all components for tissue engineering from one source we collaborate with InnoRegen, Inc., based in Daegu, Korea. GeSiM is selling InnoRegen Products and will be happy to discuss your particular application. Please contact us for price quotation on InnoRegen Bioinks.

InnoRegen Hydrogels

Prints best at temperature between 4°C and room temperature, e.g. with the GeSiM Peltier module.

Gel4Cell

Bioink for 3D bioprinting with gelatine hydrogel for increased biocompatibility and structural safety applied throughout the study of regenerative medicine.

• Cell compatible material
• High printability and uniformity
• UV-cross linkable for structural stability

Gel4Cell – Peptides

Peptide conjugated hydrogels supporting cell growth with particular tissue types.

• Gel4Cell – BMP: Bioink, which can be applied to bone regeneration research by combining BMP-2 peptide, a bone regeneration growth factor.
• Gel4Cell – VEGF: Bioink, which can be applied to vessel and skin regeneration research by combining VEGF peptide, an angiogenesis factor.
• Gel4Cell – TGF: Bioink, which can be applied to cartilage regeneration research by combining the cartilage regeneration growth factor TGF-β1 peptide.

Gel4Tissue

Bioink, which can be applied to artificial organ/tissue regeneration studies by combining pig’s intestinal membrane extracellular vagina (SIS-ECM).

Col4Cell

Collagen hydrogel for increased biocompatibility and structural safety.

InnoRegen Thermoplastic Biopolymers

Meltable biopolymers with good fit to the GeSiM cartridge heater and HT-Extruder.

• Polyinks – PCL: Caprolactone Synthetic Polymer with excellent biodegradability. For use with cells Gel4Cell bioink can be used within the same print. The printing temperature is between 65°C and 100°C.
• Polyinks – PLA: L-lactide synthetic polymer with excellent biodegradability, printing temperature is between 200°C and 250°C.
• Polyinks – PLCL: A blend of PCL and PLA with controlled biodegradability, printing temperature between 70°C and 250°C.

Biodegradability:
PLCL(W): 2….6 weeks                    PLCL(M): 6…10 weeks                   PLCL(Y): 10…16 weeks

What are the GeSiM BioScaffold printers used for?

– Production of support structures (Scaffolds…) for tissue engineering – Printing of 3D bodies from biopolymers – Research and development of biopolymers for sustainability and environmental protection

– Application of living cells and bacteria, either embedded in a biopolymer or seeded by the optional pipetting unit – 3D Printing of ceramic pastes and bone replacement materials – Melt electro spinning writing for research on lymph nodes and eardrums,

This section presents highlights of the work of our customers with GeSiM instruments for bioprinting. It is neither comprehensive nor can GeSiM be responsible for content and correctness.

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Melt Deposition Modelling of Bioactive Organic/Inorganic Hybrid Scaffolds with HT-Extruder

Research at the Laboratoire de Physique de Clermont, France is focused on the development of biomaterials with tailored bioactive, osteostimulative and other therapeutic properties for bone repair and regeneration. In particular, key studies focus on the design of an organic/inorganic platform technology inspired by the complex physiological structure of the bone: hybrids materials combining polymers and inorganic species at the molecular scale. The components of such materials can be modified to obtain a wide range of formulations with diverse physicochemical and biological properties. This, in turn, highly influences the processing conditions of each hybrid formulation into its final form.

Investigations are being carried out to understand and tailor the processing into purposefully designed  3D implantable scaffolds with microporosity and nanotopographical features that can aid  cell adhesion and in-growth of tissues and vessels. After successful results using conventional scaffold fabrication techniques (Bossard et al., 2018, Biomedical Glasses), our current studies focus on the possibility to apply additive manufacturing (AM) to organic/inorganic hybrid. The optimization of AM for hybrids can open up to new shapes and structures, helping to achieve topographical features, and possibly clinical applications, that are currently unattainable with other techniques.

The Bioscaffolder 3.2 by GeSiM proved itself to be an adequate platform for our purpose. Thanks to its modularity, it is easy to quickly perform the testing of several candidate materials with different set-ups, often in parallel. It is  possible to run proof-of-concept small batch trials for several newly synthesized formulations, optimizing time and resources. In particular, current results, although at their early stages, confirmed that with careful setting of the HT extruder module it is possible to obtain thrust forces that are sufficient for the extrusion of bioactive hybrids of polycaprolactone and bioactive glass, through both 500 and 400 μm nozzles. The temperatures and flow rates used ranged between 80-120 °C and 3-5 μm/s, respectively, depending on the molecular weight of the polymer used. With these parameters the successful direct printing of a bioactive glass hybrid was performed for the first time.

References:

[1]            H. Granel, C. Bossard,, J Lao, Y. Wittrant, et al – Bioactive Glass/Polycaprolactone Hybrid with a Dual Cortical/Trabecular Structure for Bone Regeneration – ACS App. Biomater. 2(8), 3473-3483, 2019.

[2]            Cédric Bossard, Henri Granel, Édouard Jallot, Christophe Vial, Hanna Tiainen, Yohann Wittrant, J. Lao – Polycaprolactone / bioactive glass hybrid scaffolds for bone regeneration, Biomedical Glasses 4(1), 108-122, 2018.

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MEW Milk Protein/PCL Blends for Skin Regeneration

The GeSiM bioprinter BS3.1 is an important tool at the Center for Bioengineering and NanoMedicine at the University of Otago, New Zealand.

Demand for skin replacements is rapidly increasing as burn and full-thickness wounds are difficult to repair due to the low regeneration capability of innate tissues, as well as the physical drawbacks associated with currently available substitutes.

Polycaprolactone (PCL), a bioresorbable and biocompatible, synthetic polymer was selected as scaffold material due to its mechanical stability, flexibility, and superior melt processing properties. In order to increase PCL’s biological functionality bioactive milk proteins (MPs) were blended with PCL.  To date (August 2019, GeSiM), this is the first study of its kind detailing the tissue regenerative capacity of PCL containing MPs as bioactive additives for skin regeneration using MEW.  The aim of this study was to MEW MP/PCL tissue engineered constructs (TEC) and assess their suitability for generating tissue in vitro.

The MPs, lactoferrin (LF) and whey protein (WP), were mixed with PCL individually at varying concentrations (0.05%, 0.1%, 0.25%), and in combination (COMB) at concentrations of 0.25% e ach. TECs were characterized chemically, physically, and their biological activity assessed in vitro.   Physical characterisation of MEW MP/PCL scaffolds showed that reproducible, layered micron range scaffolds could be fabricated; displaying high porosity, low degradation, and rapid protein release. Biological activity, determined via an in vitro skin model using human keratinocytes (HaCaTs) and normal human dermal fibroblasts (Nhdf) cells, showed significantly increased cell growth, spreading, and infiltration into LF (0.25%) containing scaffolds and COMB scaffolds when compared to PCL alone (p≤0.05). These findings demonstrated that the combined addition of LF and WP increased the biological activity of MEW PCL scaffolds and could be potentially used as a TEC for deep tissue dermal regeneration.

Melt Electro Writing Scaffolds seeded with Stem Cells

Melt Electro Writing (MEW) allows the creation of micron level pore sizes as compared to syringe powered pneumatic extrusion.  Cells preferentially prefer these smaller pores as shown in this study where thin 4 layered MEW PCL (50kDa) test  scaffolds of varying pore size (250 or 450 µm)  were made.

The authors developed a special method of monitoring mesenchymal stem cell (T0523) proliferation and migration by seeding cells on circular MEW (cMEW) discs as defined starting points sandwiched between two opaque PCL test scaffolds.  The smaller pore size test scaffolds exhibited faster cell growth, spread, and expansion. This novel MEW sandwich technique could potentially be used to quantitate cell numbers and migration in other 3D multi-layered MEW scaffold systems.

References:

[1] Paul R. Turner, Minami Yoshida, M. Azam Ali and Jaydee D. Cabral: Melt Electrowritten Sandwich Scaffold Technique Using Sulforhodamine B to Monitor Stem Cell Behavior, TISSUE ENGINEERING: Part C, Volume 26, Number 10, 2020

A/P Azam Ali,  Director – Bioengineering Programme & Centre for Bioengineering & Nanomedicine (Dunedin Hub), University of Otago, Dunedin, NZ

Dr. Jaydee Cabral, Senior Lecturer, Centre for Bioengineering & Nanomedicine (Dunedin Hub), University of Otago, Dunedin, NZ

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PCL-PEG Blends for Tissue Engineering

References:

MEW spun PCL Structures Mimic Artificial Eardrums

Using the GeSiM BioScaffolder 3.1, the Melt Electrowriting (MEW) process (Figure 1) was used to produce thin scaffolds of various structures within the dimensions of the human tympanic membrane (TM). It could be shown that these scaffolds meet the necessary criteria for a possible TM replacement. For this purpose, medical polycaprolactone (PCL) was melted and processed to thin fibers with 10-15 µm in diameter.

The fiber deposition was realized in different layer number, fiber distances and layer-to-layer orientations (Figure 2A-B). The different designs were characterized based on their mechanical stability and vibration characteristics. Comparisons with the human tympanic membrane showed that depending on the design, the scaffold properties could mimic the TM properties.

The immanent pores of the MEW scaffolds were closed using a thin collagen layer (thickness~300-400 nm), which increased the transmission of lower frequencies but also the growth rate of human immortalized keratinocytes (HaCaT). The results recently have been published (von Witzleben et al., 2021).

References:

M. von Witzleben, T. Stoppe, T. Ahlfeld, A. Bernhardt, M.-L. Polk, M. Bornitz, M. Neudert, M. Gelinsky: Biomimetic tympanic membrane replacement made by melt electrowriting. Adv. Healthcare Mater. 2021 (in press, DOI: 10.1002/adhm.202002089)

Fabrication of Photosynthetic Algae-laden Hydrogel Scaffold

References:

1] A. Lode, F. Krujatz, S. Brüggemeier, M. Quade, K. Schütz, S. Knaack, J. Weber, T. Bley, M. Gelinsky: “Green bioprinting: Fabrication of photosynthetic algae-laden hydrogel scaffolds for biotechnological and medical applications”, Engineering in Life Sciences, Volume 15, Issue 2, pages 177–183, March 2015

[2] F. Krujatz, A. Lode, S. Brüggemeier, K. Schütz, J. Kramer, T. Bley, M. Gelinsky, J. Weber: „Green Bioprinting: Viability and growth analysis of microalgae immobilized in 3D-plotted hydrogels versus suspension cultures“, Engineering in Life Sciences, Volume 15, Issue 7, pages 678–688, October 2015

Alginate/Methylcellulose Blends for 3D printing (Alg/MC)

The group of Prof. Michael Gelinsky at the Technische Universität Dresden conducted a study to overcome the limitations of biofabrication with cell-friendly TE Materials. The aim of the study was to develop a plotting material that is based on alginate, the probably most popular substrate material for biological 3D printing. The goal was to find a composition optimized both for printing and for cell embedding.

Basically a rather easy approach was used: Addition of Methylcellulose (MC) to low concentrated alginate. That leads to an enhanced viscosity and therefore improved printing conditions. The MC did not contribute to the gelation and was released from the scaffolds during the following cultivation. Mesenchymal stem cells were added to the alginate-MC blend and showed high viability after several weeks of cultivation within the plotted scaffolds.

In this work both cytocompatibility and mechanical properties of the alg/MC material were investigated. The developed plotting material allows to print 3D objects in the centimetre range and even complex geometries.

References:

[1] Kathleen Schütz, Anna-Maria Placht, Birgit Paul, Sophie Brüggemeier, Michael Gelinsky and Anja Lode: Three-dimensional plotting of a cell-laden alginate/methylcellulose blend: towards biofabrication of tissue engineering constructs with clinically relevant dimensions, Journal of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, Article first published online: 22 JUL 2015

An Application for Alg/MC: Bioprinting of Functional Islets of Langerhans

The aim of healing Diabetes mellitus Type 1 by transplantation of pancreatic islets requires the encapsulation of said islets in semi-permeable materials for immune-protection. To achieve this with a single device in clinically relevant size, a macroporous construct consisting of a semi-permeable material with embedded islets would be beneficial.

In a joint research project with the Medical Clinic 3 of the University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus in Dresden, the Centre for Translational Bone, Joint and Soft Tissue Research conducted a study on the possibility of 3D printing scaffolds containing functional pancreatic islets. It was possible to demonstrate not only a high rate of viability within printed scaffolds, but for the first time also show functionality of bioprinted islets (Duin et al., 2019). The material this was achieved with was the slightly adapted Alginate/Methylcellulose blend previously developed by this group (Schütz et al., 2017). To achieve functionality of islets a high permeability of the material for glucose and insulin is required, which was likely improved by the microporosity the methylcellulose adds to the scaffolds (Hodder et al., 2019).

References:

[1] Duin, S., Schütz, K., Ahlfeld, T., Lehmann, S., Lode, A., Ludwig, B., & Gelinsky, M. (2019). 3D Bioprinting of Functional Islets of Langerhans in an Alginate/Methylcellulose Hydrogel Blend. Advanced Healthcare Materials, 8(7), 1801631. https://doi.org/10.1002/adhm.201801631

[2] Hodder, E., Duin, S., Kilian, D., Ahlfeld, T., Seidel, J., Nachtigall, C., Bush, P., Covill, D., Gelinsky, M., & Lode, A. (2019). Investigating the effect of sterilisation methods on the physical properties and cytocompatibility of methyl cellulose used in combination with alginate for 3D-bioplotting of chondrocytes. Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Medicine, 30(1). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10856-018-6211-9

[3] Schütz, K., Placht, A. M., Paul, B., Brüggemeier, S., Gelinsky, M., & Lode, A. (2017). Three-dimensional plotting of a cell-laden alginate/methylcellulose blend: towards biofabrication of tissue engineering constructs with clinically relevant dimensions. Journal of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, 11(5), 1574–1587. https://doi.org/10.1002/term.2058

Reconstruction of a Human Scaphoid Bone

The replacement of bones in course of accident treatment usually requires titanium implants. It is a widely used material for trauma surgery but shows inherent drawbacks: A mismatch of mechanical properties, interface issues to the surrounding soft tissues and no capability to grow.

A joint research project of GeSiM and Dresden University of Technology (TU Dresden) – Centre for Translational Bone, Joint and Soft Tissue Research – aimed in establishing 3D printing of patient-specific implants of a degradable biomaterial. As model the human scaphoid bone was selected and 3D data extracted from a CT scan.

In a first step the CT data of the patient were analysed to separate bones from the remaining tissue (Virtual environment/ contouring). Next the CT data was transformed into a 3D DICOM model using an Open Source software package. The scaphoid bone was isolated from the complete bone set to generate 3D STL data, a format describing surfaces by triangularization. The STL format is widely used by all kind of 3D printers, also the GeSiM BS3.1.

Finally the STL data of the scaphoid bone was loaded into the software of the GeSiM BS3.1. The bone model was printed from calcium phosphate bone cement VELOX® from InnoTERE GmbH, Radebeul.

This work is a research project without clinical background. Future research may be focusing on the settlement of osteoblasts or mesenchymal stem cells in the scaffold structure for subsequent incubation and generation of an artificial “living” bone.

We thank the BMWi for funding this work (AiF-ZIM program, project number KF2891602).

References:

[1] T. Ahlfeld, T. Köhler, Ch. Czichy, A. Lode, M. Gelinsky: A Methylcellulose Hydrogel as Support for 3D Plotting of Complex Shaped Calcium Phosphate Scaffolds. Gels 2018, 4, 68 (14 pages)

Highly Customized and Affordable Implants by a new Hybrid 3D Printing Technology

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