3D bioprinting is the printing of biocompatible materials, cells, growth factors, and the other supporting materials necessary to yield functional complex living tissues. 3D bioprinting has been used to generate several different types of tissue such as skin, bone, vascular grafts, and cartilage structures. Based upon the desired properties, different materials and formulations can be used to generate both hard and soft tissues. While several 3D printing methods exist, due to the sensitivity of the materials used, extrusion-based methods with bioinks are most commonly employed.

Polaxomer is a thermo-responsive hydrogel which has been used as a mold, track patterning and sacrificial material for bioprinting and tissue engineering. It is considered one of the best printable hydrogels due to the nature of micellar-packing gelation, which allows it to be moved and shifted easily. Moreover, the viscosity of TissueFab^®- Sacrificial bioink is stable at both room temperature and human body temperature, which allows it to print at both room temperature and physiological temperature. TissueFab^®- Sacrificial Bioink becomes liquid at 4°C and dissolves in aqueous environments, which makes it easy to remove for using as sacrificial material to engineer channels and vasculature in tissue engineering application.

Product contains 10 ml of solution packaged in glass bottle.

Important tips for optimal bioprinting results

• Optimize printing conditions (e.g., nozzle diameter, printing speed, printing pressure, temperature, cell density) for the features of your 3D printer and your application.
• Reduce bubble formation. Air bubbles in bioink may hamper bioprinting. Carefully handle the bioink when you mix and transfer it to avoid bubble formation. Do not vortex or shake vigorously.

Procedure
1. Prepare bioink: Keep TissueFab^® - Sacrificial Bioink on ice to prevent gelation and gently invert the bioink to make a homogeneous solution. DO NOT vortex or shake vigorously. Transfer TissueFab^® - Sacrificial Bioink into the desired printer cartridge.
2. Bioprint: Warm TissueFab^® - Sacrificial Bioink in the printer cartridge to room temperature for 10–15 minutes to induce gelation. Follow the 3D printer manufacturer′s instructions. Load the print cartridge onto the 3D printer and print directly onto a Petri dish or into multi-well plates. Adjust the flow according to nozzle diameter, printing speed, printing pressure, and temperature. TissueFab^® - Sacrificial Bioink can be printed in tandem with cell laden bioinks using additional printheads.
3. Optional Crosslink: If additional bioinks are used, crosslink the bioprinted structure before removing sacrificial scaffold following bioink instructions.
4. Remove sacrificial scaffold: Cool printed structure to 4 °C for at least 5 minutes. Rinse or perfuse with cold PBS.
5. Culture cells: Culture the bioprinted tissue with appropriate cell culture medium following standard tissue culture procedures.

TISSUEFAB is a registered trademark of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany