B-PHOT spin-off BIO INX launches first biodegradable resin for light-based 3D (bio)printing
B-PHOT and VUB spin-off BIO INX, a leading company in bio-ink technologies, has launched the first biodegradable and biocompatible resin with shape memory properties for light-based (bio)printing. This innovative material can be deformed into a temporary shape after 3D printing and returns to its original printed shape when heated to body temperature.
The new product DEGRES INX is specifically developed for digital light projection (DLP) based 3D-(bio)printing. "This material is a world first, as it not only possesses shape memory properties but is also biodegradable and biocompatible", comments Prof. Jürgen Van Erps, expert on 3D printing at B-PHOT. "This means that the resin is suitable for cell cultivation after 3D printing. It can be used in biofabrication or 3D printing of cells."
Moreover, the material's biodegradability ensures that cells can eventually replace the printed construct entirely with their own extracellular matrix. The shape memory properties open new doors for biomedical applications. For example, this material could be used in minimally invasive surgery, where a collapsed structure can be introduced into the body through a small opening. Upon contact with body temperature, it will unfold into the original complex shape.
"We believe that light-based technologies are the future of bioprinting due to their high resolution, speed, mild crosslinking conditions, and scalability," says Jasper Van Hoorick, CEO at BIO INX and alumnus of B-PHOT.
DEGRES INX
The DEGRES INX resin is highly biocompatible as evidenced by living cells (fibroblasts) on the surface of a 3D printed scaffold. It is highly biocompatible as evidenced by living cells (fibroblasts) on the surface of a 3D printed scaffold visualized using SEM imaging, showing the high resolution as the individual pixels can be observed. DEGRES INX can be printed with high resolution down to 100 µm and allows for unprecedented design freedom. Due to its shape memory properties, DEGRES INX is the first commercially available biocompatible 4D DLP resin.
