How is 3D bioprinting shaping the future of tissue engineering?

 China's tissue engineering market is propelled by government initiatives, technological advancements, and growing medical demand. This market is not just a reflection of China's growth in healthcare technology but also proof of the country's rapid development in scientific innovation and research.

A key trend shaping China's tissue engineering market is the rapid advancement in 3D bioprinting technologies. This creation revolutionizes how organs and tissues are engineered, delivering more treatment and precision customization. In addition to this, according to the research report of Astute Analytica, the China tissue engineering market is growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.51% during the forecast period from 2024 to 2032.

Also, in 2021, the market for 3D bioprinting in China encountered a remarkable growth rate of 35%, indicating its growing adoption in medical applications. China's commitment to 3D bioprinting is also mirrored in the number of related patent applications, which grew by 50% from 2019 to 2021. These patents cover a range of applications from basic research to complicated organ printing. The country's researchers have made substantial strides in this area, successfully bioprinting kidney and liver tissues with a high degree of cellular viability, which surpasses 90% in some studies.

The Role of 3D Bioprinting in Tissue Engineering is: -

At present, due to the growing demand for organ transplantation, there is a shortage of organ donors all over the world. Although conventional tissue engineering has been widely utilized in drug discovery and disease research, conventional methods cannot satisfy the complicated spatial structure and cell-cell interaction needed by artificial organs and tissues.

The development of 3D bioprinting presents a potential solution. In 1984, Charles W. Hull invented the first 3D printer with the stereolithography (SLA) technique. Until 1988, Robert utilized Hewlett Packard inkjet printer to conduct the deposit cells experiment. Since then, 3D bioprinting technology has become better recognized by the scientific community for its possible value. Compared with the conventional approaches, 3D bioprinting technology can systematically and reproducibly build tissues or organs layer by layer.

To get a better understanding of the 3D bioprinting technology, the researcher introduced three different aspects. They compared the commercially available 3D bioprinters and analyzed the specifications of each. They also analyzed different types of bioink with their limitations and advantages. They analyzed four basic types of 3D bioprinting technologies with their characteristics. They utilized representative studies on different types of 3D bioprinting technologies to explain the functions of 3D bioprinting and showed how the 3D bioprinting technologies can be utilized in skin research or treatment fields.

The ultimate objective of 3D bioprinting is to utilize certain materials and cells to imitate natural tissue structure and produce an implant to substitute autologous or allogeneic tissue. The final product of bioprinting is utilized to restore the normal structure and function of complicated tissues. It also can be utilized to reduce the dependency on the usage of laboratory animals, like rodents in developing potential therapeutics.

Different kinds of bioink have different characteristics, so it is very essential to select a suitable bioink for the 3D bioprinting to be completed. 3D bioprinting has the advantage of accurately positioning cells stopped in the bioink layer by layer. It is suitable for the perfusion of nutrients and gas, as well as supporting intercellular and intracellular communication. Therefore, 3D bioprinting technology is becoming a technology well-suited to face these challenges