Open Collections

Development of a hyaluronic acid-based hybrid bioink for stereolithography 3D bioprinting

University of British Columbia

In the near future, tissue engineering and 3D bioprinting techniques will be essential to alleviate the dire need for organs for transplantation. It promises a very automated, rapidly scalable, and patient-specific process that eradicates existing concerns. Therefore, there is an immediate need to develop biomaterials with intrinsic biological functionalities that can be used to mimic In vivo conditions. Hyaluronic acid (HA), being an extra-cellular matrix derivative, promises unique prospects in tissue-specific applications by virtue of its bioactive properties. The work presented in this thesis describes a tunable protocol for the synthesis of a dual-crosslinkable methacrylated hyaluronic acid (MeHA) with a high degree of substitution to be used as a bioink for Digital Light Processing Stereolithography (DLP-SLA) 3D bioprinting. Furthermore, to overcome the non-celladhesive nature of MeHA, a hybrid bioink in combination with gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA) is developed that can be used to produce 3D cell-laden hydrogel scaffolds. Upon development of the hybrid bioink, the mechanical properties, including microarchitecture, swelling ratio, and compressive modulus, were assessed along with its biocompatibility. The results show a 55% enhancement in mechanical strength compared to its sole constituents and enable cell-attachment in the presence of MeHA while maintaining high cell viability. Preliminary investigations also reveal that the hybrid bioink is a more suitable candidate for DLP-SLA 3D bioprinting compared to MeHA because of its printability and cell-adhesive properties. Although, further optimization of the printing process with the hybrid bioink and the specific influences of MeHA on specialized cell types is required to be understood. This thesis lays out a firm foundation for the development of a stable MeHA bioink for DLA-SLA 3D bioprinting. It offers solutions to overcome its major limitations, without complex chemical modifications, by developing a hybrid hydrogel bioink.

Text

2020-12-16

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/76825

Electrical Engineering

University of British Columbia

UBCO

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/