In a recent article published in Journal of Materials Science, iBB-Institute for Bioengineering and Biosciences researchers developed magnetic bioinks made from kappa (κ)-carrageenan and collagen for 3D bioprinting.
This novel combination of materials allows to harness κ-carrageenan’s potential as a bioink, collagen’s native cell adhesion sites and the remote controllability of magnetic components to create structures that mimic the natural environment of tissues, promoting cell growth and tissue formation.
Results showed that the magnetic bioinks were able to be bioprinted with good shape fidelity and that they were cytocompatible and appeared to modulate angiogenesis in vitro.
Link to full paper: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10853-024-10021-y
This study, which has as first authors Duarte Almeida and Freya Küppers and was coordinated by Dr. Paola Sanjuan Alberte and Professor Frederico Ferreira, opens a new avenue for the bioprinting of remotely controllable structures with multiple applications in tissue engineering.