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With the rapid development and popularization of additive manufacturing, different technologies, including, but not limited to, extrusion-, droplet-, and vat-photopolymerization-based fabrication techniques, have emerged that have allowed tremendous progress in three-dimensional (3D) printing in the past decades. Bioprinting, typically using living cells and/or biomaterials conformed by different printing modalities, has produced functional tissues. As a subclass of vat-photopolymerization bioprinting, digital light processing (DLP) uses digitally controlled photomasks to selectively solidify liquid photocurable bioinks to construct complex physical objects in a layer-by-layer manner. DLP bioprinting presents unique advantages, including short printing times, relatively low manufacturing costs, and decently high resolutions, allowing users to achieve significant progress in the bioprinting of tissue-like complex structures. Nevertheless, the need to accommodate different materials while bioprinting and improve the printing performance has driven the rapid progress in DLP bioprinters, which requires multiple pieces of knowledge ranging from optics, electronics, software, and materials beyond the biological aspects. This raises the need for a comprehensive review to recapitulate the most important considerations in the design and assembly of DLP bioprinters. This review begins with analyzing unique considerations and specific examples in the hardware, including the resin vat, optical system, and electronics. In the software, the workflow is analyzed, including the parameters to be considered for the control of the bioprinter and the voxelizing/slicing algorithm. In addition, we briefly discuss the material requirements for DLP bioprinting. Then, we provide a section with best practices and maintenance of a do-it-yourself DLP bioprinter. Finally, we highlight the future outlooks of the DLP technology and their critical role in directing the future of bioprinting. The state-of-the-art progress in DLP bioprinter in this review will provide a set of knowledge for innovative DLP bioprinter designs.
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This content will become publicly available on December 1, 2026
3D Bioprinting of Jellyfish‐Mimicking Constructs with Dynamical Responsiveness for Water Pollution Treatment
Abstract Wastewater treatment, particularly for persistent organic pollutants (POPs), remains a significant challenge. Although advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) currently used for treating POPs can achieve a decent efficiency, they often involve high costs and necessitate additional post‐treatment processes. Here, a jellyfish‐mimicking, multi‐functional living material encapsulating algae cells are presented, namely Algelly, created using a multi‐material digital‐light processing (DLP) bioprinting technique. The Algelly construct comprises a methacrylated alginate (AlgMA) layer designed to support algae growth, and a poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) layer embedded with magnetic nanoparticles (MNs). The MNs enable the Algelly to respond to near‐infrared (NIR) laser for deformation and magnetic force for steering. It is demonstrated that the DLP bioprinting technique can fabricate the heterogeneous Algelly with high spatial resolution and efficiency, which supports subsequent algae proliferation and effective photosynthesis in the Algelly matrix. Moreover, the NIR‐induced thermo‐responsive deformation and magnetic steering capabilities enhance Algelly's adaptability for recycling and collection. Most importantly, Algelly demonstrates a high efficiency in degrading POPs under white light illumination. Therefore, it is believed that Algelly holds a promising potential for new applications in wastewater treatment, given its efficiency in POP decomposition and flexible location control capabilities.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2135720
- PAR ID:
- 10659922
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Small
- Volume:
- 21
- Issue:
- 48
- ISSN:
- 1613-6810
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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