Tough biogel structures produced by 3-D printing

“hydrogels,” a new method for forming biocompatible materials that are tough but soft and wet, have been developed by researchers. These “hydrogels” have intricately patterned shapes.Materials that can be injected into the body to deliver drugs or cells may result from the process;scaffolds for the regeneration of tissues that bear load;or robust yet adaptable actuators for future robots, according to the researchers.

MIT associate professor of mechanical engineering Xuanhe Zhao and colleagues from MIT, Duke University, and Columbia University co-authored a paper in the journal Advanced Materials that provides a description of the brand-new method.

According to Zhao, the new method is capable of producing intricate hydrogel structures that are compatible with the encapsulation of cells and are “extremely tough and robust.”This may make it possible to 3D-print intricate hydrogel structures, such as implants that will be infused with cells and drugs before being implanted in the body.