INTEGRATION OF AUTOMATED GELMA BIOINK FORMULATION TO ENHANCE EXTRUSION BASED BIOPRINTING

Abstract

Extrusion based bioprinting is transforming biomanufacturing by enabling highlycontrollable and reproducible fabrication of tissue constructs. This bioprinting modality offers advantages in customization, cytocompatibility, and tunable mechanical properties. Despite these benefits and the capabilities bioprinting offers over traditional transplantation approaches, manual bioink preparation is labor intensive and introduces variability. As extrusion based bioprinting progresses toward large scale manufacturing, there is a critical need for automated bioink formulation strategies that reduce labor demands, minimize inconsistencies, and support commercially viable bioprinting workflows. Here, we develop and validate an automated gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) bioink formulation system integrated into an extrusion based bioprinting workflow. The system employs a robotic arm with interchangeable hand attachments to automate bioink preparation. Our results demonstrate that automated bioink formulation enhances printability while achieving efficiency and viscoelastic consistency comparable to manual preparation. This integrated automation strategy establishes a foundation for scalable and reproducible extrusion based bioprinting workflows in biomanufacturing.