Fast Setting Silk Fibroin Bioink for Bioprinting of Patient-Specific Memory-Shape Implants

Abstract

The pursuit for the "perfect" biomimetic and personalized implant for musculoskeletal tissue regeneration remains a big challenge. 3D printing technology that makes use of a novel and promising biomaterials can be part of the solution. In this study, a fast setting enzymatic-crosslinked silk fibroin (SF) bioink for 3D bioprinting is developed. Their properties are fine-tuned and different structures with good resolution, reproducibility, and reliability can be fabricated. Many potential applications exist for the SF bioinks including 3D bioprinted scaffolds and patient-specific implants exhibiting unique characteristics such as good mechanical properties, memory-shape feature, suitable degradation, and tunable pore architecture and morphology.

A silk fibroin (SF) bioink for the production of patient-specific memory-shape implants is proposed using a fast setting enzymatic-based cross-linking reaction. The reproducibility and the reliability of the SF bioinks allow the production of different scaffolds with superior mechanical performance. The versatility of the SF bioink gives new opportunity concerning tissue engineering approaches, in particular for the biofabrication of patient-specific memory-shape implants.

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