Symposium: Functional Tissue Models by Biofabrication
This symposium is organized in the framework of the Collaborative Research Centre (CRC) “From the fundamentals of biofabrication towards functional tissue models”, involving researchers from University of Würzburg, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and University of Bayreuth. Biofabrication is the emerging field of automated 3D-printing technologies for the generation of 3D constructs in which cells and materials are positioned simultaneously in a tissue or organ like structure. The availability of bioinks, e.g. cell laden hydrogels which exhibit suitable properties for 3D printing and further tissue development is key for the success of the biofabrication approach, which should lead to the standardized generation of functional tissue models of sufficient structural and biological complexity.
This symposium will discuss the progress and challenges in the field leading to the development of in vitro models as alternative to animal tests, for pharma- and cancer research and as regenerative therapeutic strategies focusing on materials aspects. Topics to be discussed include (but are not limited to): mechanical and rheological properties of hydrogels, biodegradation of artificial extra cellular matrices, cytocompatibiliy and printability of bioinks, influence of printing process parameters on cellular behavior.