9 - 3D printing technologies for 3D scaffold engineering

Abstract

3D printing technologies are a promising and viable means of fabricating replicable and functional scaffolds capable of promoting tissue regeneration. Printing technologies such as direct 3D printing, 3D-Bioplotter printing, fused deposition modeling, selective laser sintering, stereolithography, indirect 3D printing, and electrospinning are commonly used 3D printing techniques for creating scaffolds. These techniques have shown success in pre-clinical settings with respect to regenerating various tissue types, and have designed implantable structures investigated in clinical trials for bone defect restoration, pulmonary disease, dysphagia, and lung cancer. Continued advancement and hybrid approaches using different material combinations, printing methodologies, and controlled drug delivery will further advance the progress of 3D printing technologies toward developing scaffolds capable of being utilized in the clinic. An overview of these 3D printing technologies and their recent developments in the field of tissue engineering are discussed, and demonstrate the promise of the recent advancements made in 3D printing.