Development of new biocompatible formulations for additive manufacturing in tissue engineering scaffold applications – BioScaff3D

The use of customised scaffolds in the treatment of broken bones to facilitate cell regeneration is becoming a necessity in today’s society, given the projected ageing of the population.

In the medical field, there are certified metal scaffolds suitable for implantation in the body. Structural optimisation of the material in the scaffold allows the generation of internal structures that facilitate cell proliferation. However, biodegradation of these scaffolds is sometimes pursued after tissue regeneration, which is not possible with metallic materials, requiring subsequent surgical interventions. 

In contrast, do polymeric scaffolds facilitate cell growth? Could the latter have a controlled biodegradability? And finally, would they have sufficient mechanical resistance to withstand the internal stresses required in each case? 

New bio-compatible formulations are developed for additive manufacturing in scaffold applications to support bone growth and their internal structure is optimised to promote cell proliferation, evaluating the effect of biodegradation. The manufacture of 3D printing filaments with these formulations for subsequent scaling and transfer is also studied. 

To this end, different formulations of biodegradable materials will first be developed to meet the requirements of the scaffolds. The aim is to characterise and validate its mechanical properties and its ability to be processed by additive manufacturing technologies.

In parallel, different internal structures of scaffolds are designed in order to achieve light and robust scaffolds that facilitate cell proliferation and promote bone growth on their surface. 

Finally, we proceed to optimise the processing and manufacturing parameters of scaffolds with different topological designs that allow validation of the desired aspects in a laboratory environment and in vitro.

The materials developed have been shown in previous research to enhance cell proliferation in their scaffold application.  

Its implementation in the medical field will place the Valencian Community and, by extension, Europe at a competitive advantage, given that its acquisition is currently mainly carried out by pan-European companies. 

The project with the acronym BioScaff3D, “Development of new biocompatible formulations for additive manufacturing in tissue engineering scaffold applications”,  is funded by IVACE, led by AIJU and with the collaboration of companies such as Colortec and Recreus. 

BioScaff3D “Bio-compatible and bio-absorbableformulations in optimised medical scaffoldstofacilitatecellproliferation”.  

Start date: 01/02/2024
Duration: 17 months
Status: Initiated

COORDINATOR CONTACT

Name: Iván Domínguez
Telephone: 965554475
E-mail: ivandominguez@aiju.es

Linked to the smart specialisation strategy line S3: Social and territorial cohesion