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Utility of Chitosan for 3D Printing and Bioprinting

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Part of the book series: Sustainable Agriculture Reviews ((SARV,volume 35))

Abstract

Traditional prototype development and optimization is a long and costly process. Customization of those products is either very difficult or unfeasible. Healthcare implants are often chosen by the surgeon, much like shoes, for the ‘best fit’. In addition to synthetic implant issues, there is a considerable lack of tissue and organs for transplant. When we consider the development and testing of new drugs, many in vitro models are poor predictors for drug efficacy. Cell and tissue growth on commonly used plastics, in 2 dimensions, may be part of this issue. Looking at drug delivery, the release and stability are often poorly optimized, with controlled drug delivery and release kinetics often unaddressed. In addition to these healthcare related issues, the world is facing increased pressure for resources due to both population growth and standard of living increases.

3D printing and 3D bioprinting offer potential solutions to these problems. There is no doubt that a new era of manufacturing is upon us; 3D printing has revolutionized the way products are made, developed and customized. Chitosan has captured a small area of these fields at 1.1% of total 3D printing and ~4% of bioprinting publications. The open source movement has made the instrumentation, modeling and hardware control software more accessible, further improving the customizability of products. This will also likely increase the number of studies using chitosan. Within the biomedical arena where chitosan and its derivatives have been used, chitosan has found utility across many cell types, including mesenchymal stromal cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, and in modeling tissues such as bone, cartilage and liver. A 3D printed chitosan-based structure was able to record breathing rate, pulse rate, and finger and bicep flexion due to changes in conductivity when compressed. As a biodegradable polymer, chitosan can be added to the list of low resource and low environmental impact 3D printing materials. This chapter focuses on the use of chitosan in 3D printing and bioprinting, highlighting its application in drug delivery and tissue engineering.

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Abbreviations

DIY:

do-it-yourself

DLP:

digital light processing

DMLS:

direct metal laser sintering

EBM:

electron beam manufacturing

EDC:

1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide hydrochloride

FDM:

fused deposition modeling

IL:

interleukin

iPSCs:

induced pluripotent stem cells

LAP:

phenyl-2,4,6-trimethylbenzoylphosphinate

MSC:

mesenchymal stromal cell

PCL:

polycaprolactone

PEG:

polyethylene glycol

PLA:

polylactic acid

PLGA:

poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)

PLL:

poly-L-lysine

SLA:

stereolithography

SLS:

selective laser sintering

SPIONS:

superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles

TCP:

tricalcium phosphate

TED:

technology, entertainment and design

TNFα:

tumor necrosis factor alpha

VEGF:

vascular endothelial growth factor

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Correspondence to Thomas J. Kean .

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Kean, T.J., Thanou, M. (2019). Utility of Chitosan for 3D Printing and Bioprinting. In: Crini, G., Lichtfouse, E. (eds) Sustainable Agriculture Reviews 35. Sustainable Agriculture Reviews, vol 35. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-16538-3_6

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