A hostile myocardial microenvironment post ischemic injury (myocardial infarction) plays a decisive role in determining the fate of tissue-engineered approaches. Therefore, engineering hybrid 3D printed platforms that can modulate the MI microenvironment for improving implant acceptance has surfaced as a critical requirement for reconstructing an infarcted heart. Here, we have employed a non-mulberry silk-based conductive bioink comprising carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to bioprint functional 3D vascularized anisotropic cardiac constructs. Immunofluorescence staining, polymerase chain reaction-based gene expression studies, and electrophysiological studies showed that the inclusion of CNTs in the bioink played a significant role in upregulating matured cardiac biomarkers, sarcomere formation, and beating rate while promoting cardiomyocyte viability. These constructs were then microinjected with calcium peroxide and IL-10-loaded gelatin methacryloyl microspheres. Measurements of oxygen concentration revealed that these microspheres upheld the oxygen availability for maintaining cellular viability for at least 5 days in a hypoxic environment. Also, the ability of microinjected IL-10 microspheres to modulate the macrophages to anti-inflammatory M2 phenotype in vitro was uncovered using immunofluorescent staining and gene expression studies. Furthermore, in vivo subcutaneous implantation of microsphere-injected 3D constructs provided insights toward the extended time frame that was achieved for dealing with the hostile microenvironment for promoting host neovascularization and implant acceptance.
Keywords: 3D bioprinting; CNTs; GelMA; cardiac tissue engineering; immunomodulatory; oxygen releasing; silk; vascularized.