Changxue Xu and Jingfei Liu have been awarded a grant from the National Foundation to advance 3D bioprinting technology
Changxue Xu, principal investigator and associate professor in Texas Tech University’s Department of Industrial, Manufacturing & Systems Engineering, and co-principal investigator Jingfei Liu, assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, have been awarded a $300,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to advance 3D bioprinting technology.
The project, titled EAGER: Dynamic Cell Patterning in Acoustic Array-Assisted 3D Bioprinting, aims to develop an innovative approach to arranging living cells during the printing process. The technique combines acoustic cell patterning with micro extrusion-based 3D bioprinting, enabling scientists to position cells in precise, dynamic patterns that more closely mimic the natural architecture of tissues and organs.
Cell patterning is organizing cells into specific spatial arrangements, this is critical for replicating the complex functionality of biological tissues. Current methods, however, are either difficult to integrate into the layer-by-layer 3D printing process or limited to fixed patterns. Xu’s team seeks to overcome these limitations by using a customized acoustic array module made up of piezoelectric transducers.
By selectively exciting these transducers, the bioink’s cells are expected to align along the filament’s center plane. Adjusting the array’s operating conditions, such as excitation patterns and frequencies, would allow researchers to dynamically change cell orientation in real time, meeting the needs of tissue models with complex geometries.
The team will employ physical models based on structural vibration and acoustic wave propagation to design the arrays and validate results with fluorescence microscopy. They will also assess printed smooth muscle cells for viability, proliferation and alpha-smooth muscle acting expression to determine contractile function.
Xu said the project could transform the field.
“I’m deeply honored to receive this NSF award, which represents a major milestone for our research team,” Xu said. “This is truly a technological breakthrough in cell patterning during 3D bioprinting. Our innovative acoustic array-assisted 3D bioprinting technology precisely arranges cells within microscale filaments, closely mimicking the native architecture of tissues and organs to realize physiologically relevant functions of fabricated artificial tissues and organs.”
The potential applications extend far beyond regenerative medicine, Xu said, with implications for disease modeling, drug screening, personalized therapies, energy and electronics manufacturing.
“This breakthrough technology is made possible through a close collaboration with co-pi, Dr. Jingfei Liu from Mechanical Engineering,” Xu said. “I’m incredibly excited about the innovative advances we will achieve together.”