Department of Mechanical Engineering, POSTECH, Pohang, Korea.
Biofabrication. 2014 Jun;6(2):024103. doi: 10.1088/1758-5082/6/2/024103. Epub 2014 Jan 24.
In the ear reconstruction field, tissue engineering enabling the regeneration of the ear's own tissue has been considered to be a promising technology. However, the ear is known to be difficult to regenerate using traditional methods due to its complex shape and composition. In this study, we used three-dimensional (3D) printing technology including a sacrificial layer process to regenerate both the auricular cartilage and fat tissue. The main part was printed with poly-caprolactone (PCL) and cell-laden hydrogel. At the same time, poly-ethylene-glycol (PEG) was also deposited as a sacrificial layer to support the main structure. After complete fabrication, PEG can be easily removed in aqueous solutions, and the procedure for removing PEG has no effect on the cell viability. For fabricating composite tissue, chondrocytes and adipocytes differentiated from adipose-derived stromal cells were encapsulated in hydrogel to dispense into the cartilage and fat regions, respectively, of ear-shaped structures. Finally, we fabricated the composite structure for feasibility testing, satisfying expectations for both the geometry and anatomy of the native ear. We also carried out in vitro assays for evaluating the chondrogenesis and adipogenesis of the cell-printed structure. As a result, the possibility of ear regeneration using 3D printing technology which allowed tissue formation from the separately printed chondrocytes and adipocytes was demonstrated.
在耳重建领域，组织工程使耳朵自身组织再生被认为是一种很有前途的技术。然而，由于耳朵的形状和组成复杂，传统方法很难使其再生。在这项研究中，我们使用包括牺牲层工艺的三维（3D）打印技术来再生耳廓软骨和脂肪组织。主要部分用聚己内酯（PCL）和细胞负载水凝胶打印。同时，也沉积了聚乙二醇（PEG）作为牺牲层来支撑主要结构。完全制造后，PEG 可以很容易地在水溶液中去除，去除 PEG 的过程对细胞活力没有影响。为了制造复合组织，从脂肪组织来源的基质细胞分化的软骨细胞和成脂细胞被包裹在水凝胶中，分别分配到耳状结构的软骨和脂肪区域。最后，我们制造了复合结构进行可行性测试，满足了对天然耳朵的几何形状和解剖结构的预期。我们还进行了体外分析，以评估细胞打印结构的软骨生成和脂肪生成。结果表明，使用允许从单独打印的软骨细胞和成脂细胞形成组织的 3D 打印技术进行耳朵再生是可能的。
