Polymer particle formation using inkjet printing

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event Polymer particle formation using inkjet printing Amanda Hüsler1, 2*, Ricky D. Wildman2* and Morgan R. Alexander1* 1 University of Nottingham, School of Pharmacy, United Kingdom 2 University of Nottingham, Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Research Group, United Kingdom Exciting developments have been made in biomaterials research over the last decade. The discovery of new materials via high throughput screening and the ability to correlate their properties to cell response has advanced the field although major challenges remain. Rational material design is a goal which the research community is well equipped to address with the large amounts of data generated in these high throughput screening campaigns. Recently, there have been a number of notable successes for discovery of novel biomaterials, applying a high throughput screening approach. Polymer microarrays (2D biomaterials) have been used to identify a new class of polymers resistant to bacterial attachment and biofilm formation[1]. Moreover, the printed substrates have been tested for the expansion and differentiation of stem cells[2],[3]. However, it is well recognized that 3-dimensional structures can behave differently compared to 2D materials. Herein, single and multiple polymer-structured microparticles (a 3D biomaterial architecture) have been produced. A combinatorial library of biodegradable and photocrosslinkable acrylate- and methacrylate-based polymers has been generated for this purpose[4]. Monodisperse microspheres in the range of 20 microns have been fabricated using piezoelectric inkjet printing. Piezoelectric inkjet printing was used to dispense ink droplets into collecting fluids with varied polarity. This approach will be compared to the use of microfluidics to form particles from polymer and monomer feedstocks. In both techniques, the physicochemical properties such as surface tension, viscosity, solubility and polymerization rate have been shown to be critical for successful creation of polymer microparticles. The vision is to mature this effort for applications that require acceptance into body such as drug delivery and cell carriers in regenerative medicine strategies to engineer cell functions. Specifically, the effect of microparticles on cellular attachment and control of stem cell differentiation will be looked at in the near future.