Elastin-like Polypeptide-Based Bioink: A Promising Alternative for 3D Bioprinting

Biomacromolecules. 2021 Dec 13;22(12):4956-4966. doi: 10.1021/acs.biomac.1c00861. Epub 2021 Nov 9.

Abstract

Three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting offers a great alternative to traditional techniques in tissue reconstruction, based on seeding cells manually into a scaffold, to better reproduce organs' complexity. When a suitable bioink is engineered with appropriate physicochemical properties, such a process can advantageously provide a spatial control of the patterning that improves tissue reconstruction. The design of an adequate bioink must fulfill a long list of criteria including biocompatibility, printability, and stability. In this context, we have developed a bioink containing a precisely controlled recombinant biopolymer, namely, elastin-like polypeptide (ELP). This material was further chemoselectively modified with cross-linkable moieties to provide a 3D network through photopolymerization. ELP chains were additionally either functionalized with a peptide sequence Gly-Arg-Gly-Asp-Ser (GRGDS) or combined with collagen I to enable cell adhesion. Our ELP-based bioinks were found to be printable, while providing excellent mechanical properties such as stiffness and elasticity in their cross-linked form. Besides, they were demonstrated to be biocompatible, showing viability and adhesion of dermal normal human fibroblasts (NHF). Expressions of specific extracellular matrix (ECM) protein markers as pro-collagen I, elastin, fibrillin, and fibronectin were revealed within the 3D network containing cells after only 18 days of culture, showing the great potential of ELP-based bioinks for tissue engineering.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Bioprinting* / methods
  • Elastin
  • Humans
  • Peptides
  • Printing, Three-Dimensional
  • Tissue Engineering / methods
  • Tissue Scaffolds / chemistry

Substances

  • Peptides
  • Elastin