Researchers have recently created a minimally invasive scaffold delivery system using amphiphilic dynamic thermoset polyurethane (DTPU). This new intervention allows for multidimensional morphing.
The research was published on February 21 in Nature Communications. The Chinese Academy of Science’s Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology (SIAT) is home to the research team.
The biomedical industry makes extensive use of three-dimensional (3D) printing. That has demonstrated promising outcomes in a range of biomedical applications. However, installing heavy 3D-printed scaffolds frequently means putting the surgical region at risk for accidents.
Prof. Zhao Xiaoli, one of the corresponding authors of this study, said
Given the growing preference for minimally invasive surgery in clinical practice, delivering 3D-printed scaffolds in a compact state and allowing them to autonomously morph in vivo to fit the implantation site would be advantageous
The goal of this minimally invasive scaffold delivery system was to create scaffolds with water-triggered programmable deformation, swelling-stiffening properties, and body temperature-triggered shape memory function. The researchers used a mechanically tunable and dynamically crosslinked shape memory polyurethane system. That allows for application with extrusion-based multi-material 4D printing.
The two-dimensional (2D) printed structure may constitute a one-dimensional (1D) shape for catheter delivery. As shown by in vitro and in vivo tests. After the implantation, it naturally changed into the required three-dimensional structure for mechanical support. And cavity filling in response to changes in body temperature and bodily fluids while avoiding potentially damaging stimuli.
With the potential for use in biomedical applications. This work offers a novel and promising method for the minimally invasive correction of tissue abnormalities.
