Investigation of rheology, printability, and biocompatibility of N,O-carboxymethyl chitosan and agarose bioinks for 3D bioprinting of neuron cells

Abstract

This paper investigates the suitability of varying compositions of N,O-Carboxymethyl Chitosan (NOCC) and agarose blend bioinks for 3D bioprinting. The bioinks encapsulating neuro2A cells were bioprinted and imaged using a confocal microscope over 14 days to determine the cell viability. The rheological properties of each bioink were characterized, and the printability number for each bioink was determined. It was observed that while increasing the agarose concentration leads to a decrease in the rheological and printability properties of the bioinks it leads to an increase in cell viability. Therefore, using the window of biofabrication paradigm, it was concluded that a balanced mixture of 40% agarose and 60% NOOC is the most suitable bioink in terms of biocompatibility as well as printability.