Biofabrication

How engineered materials and machines powered by living biological cells can tackle technological challenges in medicine, agriculture, and global security. You are a biological machine whose movement is powered by skeletal muscle, just as a car is a machine whose movement is powered by an engine. If you can be built from the bottom up with biological materials, other machines can be as well. This is the conceptual starting point for biofabrication, the act of building with living cells--building with biology in the same way we build with synthetic materials. In this volume in the MIT Press Essential Knowledge series, Ritu Raman offers an accessible introduction to biofabrication, arguing that it can address some of our greatest technological challenges. After presenting the background information needed to understand the emergence and evolution of biofabrication and describing the fundamental technology that enables building with biology, Raman takes deep dives into four biofabrication applications that have the potential to affect our daily lives: tissue engineering, organs-on-a-chip, lab-grown meat and leather, and biohybrid machines. Organs-on-a-chip (devices composed of miniature model tissues), for example, could be used to test new medicine and therapies, and lab-grown meat could alleviate environmental damage done by animal farming. She shows that biological materials have abilities synthetic materials do not, including the ability to adapt dynamically to their environments. Exploring the principles of biofabrication, Raman tells us, should help us appreciate the beauty, adaptiveness, and persistence of the biological machinery that drives our bodies and our world.

The term biofabrication is defined as the automated generation of biologically functional products with structural organization. Combining cells with biomaterials, biofabrication consists of using industrial methods to combine cells with biomaterials. This book covers the different strategies and established techniques to create artificial living tissues. By providing an overview of the whole biofabrication development process, including design phase, manufacturing, and evaluation of the resulting product it is the perfect support for the classroom. This book enables students to jump into the field of biofabrication by covering all the aspects of this highly active field of science at the intersection of cell biology, molecular biology, engineering, materials science, and chemistry. Unique textbook on biofabrication. Covers the different manufacturing techniques used to make artificial tissues. Covers all aspects of the interdisciplinary field of biofabrication. Includes exercises for students to test their knowledge.

Biofabrication is a practical guide to the novel, inherently cross-disciplinary scientific field that focuses on biomanufacturing processes and a related range of emerging technologies. These processes and technologies ultimately further the development of products that may involve living (cells and/or tissues) and nonliving (bio-supportive proteins, scaffolds) components. The book introduces readers to cell printing, patterning, assembling, 3D scaffold fabrication, cell/tissue-on-chips as a coherent micro-/nano-fabrication toolkit. Real-world examples illustrate how to apply biofabrication techniques in areas such as regenerative medicine, pharmaceuticals and tissue engineering. In addition to being a vital reference for scientists, engineers and technicians seeking to apply biofabrication techniques, this book also provides an insight into future developments in the field, and potential new applications. Discover the multi-disciplinary toolkit provided by biofabrication and apply it to develop new products, techniques and therapies Covers a range of important emerging technologies in a coherent manner: cell printing, patterning, assembling, 3D scaffold fabrication, cell/tissue-on-chips... Readers develop the ability to apply biofabrication technologies through practical examples

Scaffold-free tissue engineering approaches take advantage of cell–cell interactions, specifically the phenomena of self-assembly and self-sorting. By using micro-molded nonadhesive hydrogels, mono-dispersed cells can be seeded and directed to form spheroids as well as more complex shapes. These complex structures, including toroids, honeycombs, and loop-ended dogbones, bypass the critical diffusion distance required to maintain cell viability in culture over time. In addition, the formed microtissues are amenable to assays that analyze the self-assembly dynamics, the sorting of two different cell types, the fusion of two individual tissues, and the power produced by cell aggregates as they contract around molded gel pegs. The biofabrication of multiple microtissues into a larger macrotissue with a patent network of lumens for perfusion is an active area of research for eventual translation of tissue engineering products to the operating room.

Integrated circuits transformed our lives, and the potential for integrating biology with devices promises even greater transformations. A key question is how to effectively interface biological and microfabricated systems. Our approach is to “biofabricate” the biology-device interface using biological materials and mechanisms. Here, we review recent progress on three biofabrication approaches: the use of stimuli-responsive materials to recognize device-imposed electrical inputs to direct the assembly (i.e., to electrodeposit) of hydrogels; the use of enzymes to build structure by conjugating and crosslinking macromolecules; and the use of genetic techniques to engineer proteins for assembly. We further illustrate how these biofabrication approaches enable the biofunctionalization of previously fabricated microfluidic devices and suggest the potential for lab-on-chip analysis and the creation of experimental devices to study complex biological systems. We anticipate that the complementarity between biological and technological fabrication paradigms will provide broad opportunities to build structures that couple the power of electronics to the versatility of biology.

Biofabrication for Orthopedics A comprehensive overview of biofabrication techniques for orthopedics and their novel applications With an ever-increasing global population and the rise in the occurrence of orthopedic diseases amongst an aging population, it is essential for technological advances to meet this growing medical need. Orthopedic biofabrication is a cutting-edge field that seeks to produce novel clinical solutions to this mounting problem, through the incorporation of revolutionary technologies that have the potential to not only transform healthcare, but also provide highly automated and personalized patient solutions. With the advances in the discipline, there is a significant growing interest in biofabrication for orthopedics in research activity geared towards routine clinical use. Ideal for a broad readership amongst medical practitioners and scientists, Biofabrication for Orthopedics summarizes all aspects of the topic: detailed information on the technology, along with advanced developments, research progress, and future perspectives on biofabrication for orthopaedics—particularly on the potential applications for tissue engineering technologies. In doing so, the book describes the various biomaterials—natural and synthetic—use for orthopedics and discusses the many ways in which these materials can be used in all parts of the body. As such, it offers detailed information on a wide range of applications in the fields of biology and clinical and industrial manufacturing. Biofabrication for Orthopedics readers will also find: Insights into the applications of biofabrication technologies in various bodily functions Thorough discussion of different biofabrication techniques used in creating orthopedic products, like stereolithography, cell sheet and organ bioprinting, electrospinning, and microfluidics Discussion of a wide range of diverse functions, such as bone implants, skin regeneration, vascularization, meniscus remodeling, and more Biofabrication for Orthopedics is a useful reference for those in a variety of research fields like medical-related practitioners and scientists, materials science, medicine, and manufacturing, as well as the libraries who support them.

3D tissue modelling is an emerging field used for the investigation of disease mechanisms and drug development. The two key drivers of this upsurge in research lie in its potential to offer a way to reduce animal testing with respect to biotoxicity analysis, preferably on physiology recapitulated human tissues and, additionally, provides an alternative approach to regenerative medicine. Integrating physics, chemistry, materials science, and stem cell and biomedical engineering, this book provides a complete foundation to this exciting, and interdisciplinary field. Beginning with the basic principles of 3D tissue modelling, the reader will find expert reviews on key fabrication technologies and processes, including microfluidics, microfabrication technology such as 3D bioprinting, and programming approaches to emulating human tissue complexity. The next stage introduces the reader to a range of materials used for 3D tissue modelling, from synthetic to natural materials, as well as the emerging field of tissue derived decellularized extracellular matrix (dECM). A whole host of critical applications are covered, with several chapters dedicated to hard and soft tissues, as well as focused reviews on the respiratory and central nervous system. Finally, the development of in vitro tissue models to screen drugs and study progression and etiologies of diseases, with particular attention paid to cancer, can be found.

Essentials of 3D Biofabrication and Translation discusses the techniques that are making bioprinting a viable alternative in regenerative medicine. The book runs the gamut of topics related to the subject, including hydrogels and polymers, nanotechnology, toxicity testing, and drug screening platforms, also introducing current applications in the cardiac, skeletal, and nervous systems, and organ construction. Leaders in clinical medicine and translational science provide a global perspective of the transformative nature of this field, including the use of cells, biomaterials, and macromolecules to create basic building blocks of tissues and organs, all of which are driving the field of biofabrication to transform regenerative medicine. Provides a new and versatile method to fabricating living tissue Discusses future applications for 3D bioprinting technologies, including use in the cardiac, skeletal, and nervous systems, and organ construction Describes current approaches and future challenges for translational science Runs the gamut of topics related to the subject, from hydrogels and polymers to nanotechnology, toxicity testing, and drug screening platforms