Annabelle Neuäusler, M.Sc.

The artificial production of biological tissues and organs has been a research goal in the field of regenerative medicine for many years. In this process, living cells are taken from tissue donations, propagated and combined with so-called scaffold materials and biological factors to produce the target tissue. 3D printing techniques have also been used for several years to mimic the complex structure of natural tissues.

One of the biggest challenges in building larger tissues is to provide oxygen and nutrients to the cells. Within the body, this task is performed by the vascular system of arteries, veins and capillaries. However, the microscopically small capillary vessels cannot yet be produced in a direct way using today's printing methods. This is where my project comes in. The aim of the project is to improve the supply of cells in the materials used for printing (bio-inks). In the future, these bio-inks can be used, for example, to produce tissue models for research into new drugs. This will make it possible to avoid animal experiments and test patient-specific active ingredients.