3D-Printed Sacrificial Ink Platform for High-Resolution Imaging of Endothelial Cell Function in Tortuous Vessels and Aneurysms

Vascular tortuosity and aneurysms pose significant health risks across a variety of human tissues and blood vessel types. These alterations in vessel shape cause anomalies in blood flow dynamics, which significantly impact endothelial function. Animal models of these vascular disease states have been illustrative in some cases, but are both expensive to establish and limited to the animal species' physiology. In response to this, in vitro 3D organ-on-a-chip (OOC) models have become a powerful toolset for assessing vascular function and endothelial responses in human cells. While each of the OOC models has its strengths, an accessible system is needed for studying vessel permeability, a key indicator of vascular function in curved vessels and aneurysms under physiological shear rate and pressure. Here, the presented methodology enables the study of human endothelial cell responses to flow anomalies in an economical curved-vessel model system using an entry-level bioprinter that produces vessels that are compatible with physiological fluid flow rates, permeability studies, high-resolution light microscopy, and extracellular matrix support with physiological stiffness.