Achieving functionalized artificial skin with immune response would solve an important problem when treating burn patients with larger skin transplants, since the skin is the main immune barrier of the human body and until now these models have lacked immune response. Furthermore, with the proper biological approach, we could obtain a generic skin suitable for transplantation to patients with different major histocompatibility complex (MHC). This work presents an original method to achieve this goal by creating cylindrical pore-like structures with laser, where subsequently immune cells are included using a BA-LIFT (Blister Actuated Laser Induced Forward Transfer) technique in a co-culture with the treated skin, in order to assess their engraftment to the artificial skin.
Laser-induced forward transfer (LIFT) is a fast, clean, non-contact metallization technique that allows the deposition of small volumes (down to picoliters) of a wide range of materials in a very precise and controlled way. In this work, we show a complete description of the metallization by LIFT using pulsed laser sources and a commercial silver-based paste. We include a description of the transference process and discuss the influence of the paste viscosity and the acceptor substrate roughness. To avoid the use of a standard paste-curing process in a furnace, a second laser process is used to cure the silver paste in a selective way, preventing any thermal damage in the materials below the paste or in other parts of the device. In summary, we show that the use of a LIFT technique allows the metallization of wide areas with high aspect ratio lines, that can be cured selectively, and present very good mechanical properties, being suitable for its use in flexible electronics applications.
Laser Direct Write techniques for printing applications of living material is currently a hot topic in different biomedical and engineering fields like tissue engineering, drug delivery, biosensing, etc. specialized groups in the field have been done to find and control the ideal conditions of printability, in order to maintaining unchanged the properties of the biological transferred material.
In this work we present a comprehensive study of the printability map of two of the most used biocompatible hydrogels, Sodium Alginate and Methylcellulose. We discuss the effect of hydrogel density, laser parameters influence, etc. using a blister assisted laser writing technique. In our approach we use a thick polyamide layer for blister generation, this presents huge advantages to limit the direct laser irradiation of the living material to be transferred.
In addition the physics of blister dynamics and droplet-jet formation is discussed by means of a combined study using numerical modeling of the process fluid dynamics and high speed imaging of the transfer.
Finally a particular example of advantages of the approach from the biological point of view is discussed presenting a cell viability study of Jurkat cell printing in the conditions discussed in the study
Laser bioprinting is a powerful tool in many biological fields due to its versatility in placing and construct different geometries of biological materials. The high accuracy and non-destructive nature of this method can be applied to the study of complex biological systems. In particular, single cell laser bioprinting helps to understand the relationships between cells and their local environment. Immunology is a transversal field that is governed by a complex network of genetic and signalling pathways subtending a network of interacting cells. In this context, mobility of the cells in a network along with their situation and the gene products they interact with, plays an important roll in the behaviour of the immune system. In this work we use a laser induced forward transfer blister assisted (BALIFT) approach to assess these cell-cell interaction and mobility in vitro. This method helps to understand properly the role of a cell in such networks to increase our knowledge of the immune system response. This work presents BALIFT bioprinting of single hematopoietic cells and chemoattractant proteins with high spatial resolution. In particular NK cells (natural killer), T-lymphocyte and chemokines and cytokine molecules are printed in specific patterns to study cell-cell and cell-environment interaction and cell migration. Whereby placing cellular components on a matrix previously designed on demand allow us to test the molecular interactions between lymphocytes and pathogens; as well as the generation of two-dimensional structures printed ad hoc in order to study the mechanisms of mobilization of immune system cells.
Publisher’s Note: This conference presentation, originally published on 4/19/17, was withdrawn per author request.
The immune system is a very complex system that comprises a network of genetic and signaling pathways subtending a network of interacting cells. The location of the cells in a network, along with the gene products they interact with, rules the behavior of the immune system. Therefore, there is a great interest in understanding properly the role of a cell in such networks to increase our knowledge of the immune system response. In order to acquire a better understanding of these processes, cell printing with high spatial resolution emerges as one of the promising approaches to organize cells in two and three-dimensional patterns to enable the study the geometry influence in these interactions. In particular, laser assisted bio-printing techniques using sub-nanosecond laser sources have better characteristics for application in this field, mainly due to its higher spatial resolution, cell viability percentage and process automation. This work presents laser assisted bio-printing of antigen-presenting cells (APCs) in two-dimensional geometries, placing cellular components on a matrix previously generated on demand, permitting to test the molecular interactions between APCs and lymphocytes; as well as the generation of two-dimensional structures designed ad hoc in order to study the mechanisms of mobilization of immune system cells. The use of laser assisted bio-printing, along with APCs and lymphocytes emulate the structure of different niches of the immune system so that we can analyse functional requirement of these interaction.
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