Developments with 3D bioprinting for novel drug discovery

Abstract

Introduction: Although there have been significant contributions from the pharmaceutical industry to clinical practice, several diseases remain unconquered, with the discovery of new drugs remaining a paramount objective. The actual process of drug discovery involves many steps including pre-clinical and clinical testing, which are highly time- and resource-consuming, driving researchers to look for technological interventions that can improve the process efficiency. The shift of modelling technology from two-dimensions (2D) to three-dimensions (3D) for in vitro drug screening is one of such advancements. Three-dimensional models allow for close mimicry of cellular interactions and tissue microenvironments thereby improving the accuracy of results. The advent of this bioprinting technology for fabrication of tissue constructs has shown potential to improve 3D culture models. Areas covered: The present review provides a comprehensive update on a wide range of bioprinted tissue models and appraise them for their potential use in drug discovery research. Expert opinion: Efficiency, reproducibility, and standardization are some impediments of the bioprinted 3D models. In addition, vascularization of the constructs has to be addressed for the bioprinting domain, in the near future. While much progress has already been made with several seminal works, the next milestone will be the commercialization of these models after due regulatory approval.

Aspiration-assisted bioprinting of the osteochondral interface

“…Given the high failure rate in drug discovery, development of more precise and reproducible preclinical models using advanced technologies is crucial, which closely recapitulate the native micro-environmental factors. Compared to conventional two-dimensional (2D) culture, three-dimensional culture (3D) is more favorable in imitating cell bioactivities, tissue microstructure, and cell-matrix interactions 12 . 3D bioprinting is an emerging technology that builds targeted tissues which resemble histomorphologic, micro-architectural and biomechanical properties of native ones 13 - 16 .…”

Recent Trends in Three-Dimensional Bioinks Based on Alginate for Biomedical Applications

“…However, it is widely recognized that the tumor microenvironment performs an important function in regulating the action of numerous drugs on the tumor. Bioprinting has demonstrated a guarantee in manufacturing tumor versions with improved biological similarity over their 2D alternatives [ 152 ]. This is actually confirmed in a glioma model created employing glioma stem cell-laden Alg/Gel/fibrinogen bioink in Dai et al [ 153 ] study.…”

Patient-Derived In Vitro Models for Drug Discovery in Colorectal Carcinoma

“…that differ by their crosslinking properties and construct size they can create. Whereas, in scaffold-free models cell density is higher, cells self-organize and deposit an extracellular-matrix, which allows superior cell-cell interactions [134,135].…”