AccScience Publishing / IJB / Online First / DOI: 10.36922/ijb.5038
REVIEW
Early Access

Recent advances in liver bioengineering and disease modeling using bioprinting

Kimson Chitolie1 Frances DiPietro2 Sneha Phillip2 Kamryn Purpura1 Aylin Acun1*
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1 Biomedical Engineering Department, Widener University, Chester, PA, 19013, United States
2 Biology Department, Widener University, Chester, PA, 19013, United States
Submitted: 3 October 2024 | Accepted: 9 December 2024 | Published: 8 January 2025
© 2025 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
Abstract

The increase in prevalence of liver diseases and lack of versatile treatment options for end-stage liver diseases stresses the need for novel approaches and advanced technologies for developing physiologically and pathologically relevant models of liver. Liver bioengineering through bioprinting has emerged as a pivotal area of research, aiming to address the critical shortage of donor organs and improve drug testing and disease modeling. Through bioprinting the complex structure, composition and geometry of liver microstructure can be replicated to give rise to liver models that can mimic the healthy or diseased tissue. These capabilities render bioprinted liver models suitable for advancing drug discovery and testing studies, as well as disease modeling. This review paper explores the application of bioprinting technologies in liver tissue engineering, highlighting the progress in the field through exploring materials, cell sources and new current techniques used in bioprinting of liver models. Additionally, the article explores spheroid printing and current preclinical models as well as key challenges and future perspectives. This comprehensive overview aims to provide insights into the current state of liver bioengineering through bioprinting and to identify future directions for research and clinical application.

 

Keywords
Liver
Bioprinting
Tissue engineering
Disease modeling
Bioink
Funding
This research was funded by Widener University, School of Engineering
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest
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International Journal of Bioprinting, Electronic ISSN: 2424-8002 Print ISSN: 2424-7723, Published by AccScience Publishing