Abstract

The development of 3D printing has recently attracted significant attention on constructing complex three-dimensional physiological microenvironments. However, it is very challenging to provide a bio-ink with cell-harmless and high mold accuracy during extrusion in 3D printing. To overcome this issue, a technique improving the shear-thinning performance of semi-IPN bio-ink, which is universally applicable to all alginate/gelatin-based materials, was developed. Semi-IPN bio-ink prepared by cyclic heating–cooling treatment in this study can reduce the cell damage without sacrificing the accuracy of the scaffolds for its excellent shear-thinning performance. A more than 15% increase in post-printing Cell viability verified the feasibility of the strategy. Moreover, the bio-ink with low molecular weight and wide molecular weight distribution also promoted a uniform cell distribution and cell proliferation in clusters. Overall, this strategy revealed the effects of molecular parameters of semi-IPN bio-inks on printing performance, and the cell activity was studied and it could be widely applicable to construct the simulated extracellular matrix with various bio-inks.