Abstract

Printing with Silks – New Approaches and Applications

David L. Kaplan, Stern Family Endowed Professor of Engineering, Professor & Chair -- Dept of Biomedical Engineering, Tufts University

We continue to develop, study and apply silk protein-based inks useful for 3D printing.  The features of these inks involve all aqueous and ambient processing, cyto-compatible features, versatility in control of mechanical properties, avoidance of chemical or photochemical crosslinking requirements, and the FDA-approved nature of the protein.   hese features support a range of studies related to biomaterials and tissue engineering, as well as cell delivery and related themes.  Our most recent advances in building complex 3D structures using silk-based approaches will be reviewed, including new processing methods, underwater silk printing inks, and new modes to functionalize biomaterials with silk ink jet printing for biomaterials.