Establishing a Novel Culture System Using 3D Printing to Induce Osteogenesis in MC3T3-E! Osteoblasts

Whole organ tissue engineering represents a potential solution to the problem of organ shortage and host rejection; however, the process of producing a three-dimensional, functional organ is extremely complex. Research has used three-dimensional printing in order to combat the cost and time constraints that come with whole organ studies. This project created 3D scaffolds based on the trabecular portion of a sheep talus. Using these raw materials, pre-osteoblasts were injected onto the scaffold to test their proliferation within the 3D space. The purpose of this study was to create a three dimensional environment that was able to be coated and sustain cellular life in order to study osteogenesis in 3D. Successful generation of a 3D scaffold was made and printed with increasing efficiency to combat the cost and time constraints generally found with living tissue 3D matrices. Cells initially cultured in a traditional 2D environment were able to be removed using 0.25% trypsin and 1x PBS washes and subsequently placed in the 3D environment where it was maintained for multiple weeks. The success of maintaining the cells on the scaffold showed the promise of this technique to study how cells respond to a 3D environment in comparison to the traditional study method of a 2D environment