3D Printing of Microstructured and Stretchable Chitosan Hydrogel for Guided Cell Growth

The ability to produce complex micro- or nanostructures from naturally derived hydrogels is significant for biomedical applications. However, precisely controlled architectures of soft hydrogels are difficult to be achieved due to their limited mechanical properties. Despite intensive research, significant challenges persist to fabricate hydrogels with ordered structures and adequate mechanical and biological properties for mimicking native tissues. In this work, a 3D printing technique is proposed to fabricate chitosan hydrogel with highly flexible and organized microfiber networks. The microstructured hydrogel scaffolds are obtained through a neutralization step. The strain at failure of hydrogel filaments can reach up to ≈400% and maximum strength is ≈7.5 MPa. The hydrogel scaffolds feature surface textures that can guide and align cell growth. This approach of tailoring hydrogels opens doors to design and produce 3D tissue constructs with topographical, biological, and mechanical compatibility.