Summary
Published in Science Advances (2020), this peer-reviewed study used 3D Petri Dish® micro-molds to form scaffold-free 3D microtissues. Full citation: Parfenov, Vladislav A., et al. Magnetic levitational bioassembly of 3D tissue construct in space
Magnetic levitational bioassembly of 3D tissue construct in space
Research Overview
Magnetic levitational bioassembly builds 3D tissue constructs without scaffolds or labels, and this study took it further than any lab bench: using a magnetic bioassembler designed, developed, and certified for space research, 3D tissue constructs were biofabricated in space under microgravity from tissue spheroids of human chondrocytes.
Bioassembly and sequential spheroid fusion agreed well with the team’s predictive mathematical models and computer simulations, and the constructs showed good viability and advanced stages of fusion — evidence that scaffold-free formative biofabrication works in microgravity.
Key Discoveries
- First 3D tissue constructs biofabricated in space under microgravity from human chondrocyte spheroids
- Spheroid fusion matched predictive mathematical models and computer simulations
- Constructs remained viable and reached advanced fusion stages
