Fabrication and Characterization of Collagen-Polypyrrole Constructs Using Direct-Ink Write Additive Manufacturing
Abstract
Current efforts in the tissue engineering field are being directed towards the creation of platforms which will facilitate in instructing cells towards biologically relevant outcomes such as stem cell differentiation and disease pathophysiology. Traditional fabrication methods serve as a limiting factor for the production of such platforms as they lack feature and geometric complexity. Additive Manufacturing (AM) offers advantage over said methods by affording designers creative freedom and great control over printed constructs. Such constructs can then be used to create appropriate models for study- ing a plethora of tissues and structures. An AM methodology for Direct-Ink Write (DIW) printing of conjugated polymer-based constructs using collagen-polypyrrole (Col-PPy) is presented. Potential for Col-PPy constructs as electro-conductive and electro-active platforms is evaluated through electrical conductivity and ionic conductivity characterization, and demonstrated through bilayer performance and spectrometry evaluations. Finally, degree of polymerization and topography are reported using optical and SEM imaging.