Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Laser-based printing is a noncontact printing method. It shares one main advantage with all noncon-
tact printing methods—reduced contamination. During the process, the printing device and the target
substrate are always separate thereby reducing the possibility of contamination (
Stratakis et al.
,
2009
).
2.6
SUMMARY
Over the past few decades, a variety of 3D printing and nanomanufacturing techniques have emerged
with the development of laser technology, CAD techniques, and digital microelectronic devices. Rapid
and automatic manufacturing of 3D structures ranging from nanoscale to macroscale has been achieved.
The efficiency, flexibility, resolution, and versatility of these 3D printing and nanomanufacturing tech-
niques have generated much excitement in the field of biomedical engineering. AM methods using laser
utilize diverse laser sources, materials, and experimental setups. Ultraviolet and near-infrared laser are
used to fabricate structures. Donner slide and ribbon are coated by various materials from hydrogel to
bioceramics. All structures are designed using CAD layer by layer and printed via laser. These additive
manufacturing techniques are applied to a wide range of fields, such as investigation of tumor cell de-
velopment and progression, regeneration of tissue replacement, and bioactuators, to name a few. Many
have reported biocompatibility, resolution, and efficiency of fabricated scaffolds, as well as good cell
viability, proliferation, DNA differentiation, and cell-cell interaction. There is no significant change of
phenotype, cell damage, and DNA impairment. Compared with other techniques, such as ink-jet and
micropen printing, laser-based AMs provide a versatile approach to tissue or organ printing (
Mironov
et al.
,
2009
). With more and more biomaterials and cell-lines becoming available, tremendous work
has been done to apply and make the best use of these 3D printing techniques in both basic biological
research and clinical medicine. For instance, engineered functional tissues have shown great promise
for
in vitro
drug test as well as
in vivo
transplantation. Medical devices integrated with biomimetic 3D
microarchitectures are also revolutionizing traditional healthcare research and industry. While the ulti-
mate goal of 3D printing of functional human organs seems elusive for now, given the limitations of the
material, cell-line, and the 3D manufacturing process, the development of 3D bioprinting techniques
will continue to expand with potential applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.
REFERENCES
Search WWH ::
Custom Search