High-speed 3D bioprinter: new opportunities for drug discovery

This breakthrough technology is expected to advance drug discovery, offering cancer researchers the means to better replicate specific organs and tissues, which could help to predict and develop new pharmaceutical therapies with increased accuracy and reduce the reliance on animal testing.

Associate Professor David Collins, Head of the Collins BioMicrosystems Laboratory at the University of Melbourne, commented on the approach’s advantages over current bioprinting technologies: “In addition to drastically improving print speed, our approach enables a degree of cell positioning within printed tissues. Incorrect cell positioning is a big reason most 3D bioprinters fail to produce structures that accurately represent human tissue."

Bioprinting currently faces substantial challenges due to the lack of precision in cell arrangement. Collins compares the arrangement of cells in human tissue to the precision required in assembling a car’s mechanical components. Current 3D bioprinters rely on natural cell alignment, which often fails to replicate the necessary cellular organisation found in human tissues. To address this, the University of Melbourne team’s system uses acoustic waves generated by a vibrating bubble to guide cell positioning during printing, creating a structure that allows cells to develop into more complex tissues.

Traditional 3D bioprinters use a slow, layer-by-layer fabrication process, which not only extends print time but can compromise cell viability during printing. Transferring printed cell structures into standard laboratory plates for further analysis and imaging also introduces risks, as this handling can impact the integrity of these fragile structures.

The University of Melbourne’s approach rethinks this process, implementing an optical-based system that eliminates the need for a layer-by-layer method. The technique uses vibrating bubbles to print cellular structures in seconds – up to 350 times faster than existing methods. This enables a more accurate representation of human tissues at a cellular level while significantly increasing cell survival rates. The team has also designed the system to print directly into standard lab plates, maintaining the structural integrity and sterility of the printed tissues and avoiding physical handling.

Callum Vidler, a PhD student and lead author on the project, highlighted the interest this technology has already sparked among medical researchers: “Biologists recognise the immense potential of bioprinting, but until now, it has been limited to applications with a very low output,” he said. “We've developed our technology to address this gap, offering significant advancements in speed, precision, and consistency. This creates a crucial bridge between lab research and clinical applications."

The team has received positive feedback from around 60 researchers across leading institutions, including the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Harvard Medical School, and the Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre, underscoring the broad interest and potential applications of this new bioprinting method.