3D modelling of bioprinted porous bone implants

The anatomical and functional loss of a tissue is one of the most debilitating problems which involves a great cost to the international healthcare sector. A solution to the methods of traditional medicine is the new field of regenerative medicine. Tissue engineering aims at the development of artificial tissues through the use of biomaterials and specific cells. In the field of bone tissue, the use of scaffolds to promote tissue regeneration is a topic of great interest. The combination of additive manufacturing and computational methods led to the creation of bone scaffolds with complex microstructure and mechanical behavior comparable to that of bone. In this study, some of the representative models of triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS) have been printed in 3D through the stereolithographic technique. Specifically, Schwarz Primitive and Gyroid surfaces have been created computationally; they are characterized by a complex geometry, a high pore interconnectivity and a curvature such as to play a key role in the mechanism of cell proliferation. There are several design parameters that can be varied in these structures and can consequently affect the performance of the scaffold. Morphological and mechanical analysis were performed to experimentally assess the properties of the scaffolds. Finally, the relationship between the relative density and the mechanical characteristics of the scaffolds has been analyzed in order to understand if the patterns created can be used for applications in bone tissue engineering.