3-D bioprinted human-derived skin organoids accelerate full-thickness skin defects repair.

ABSTRACT

The healing of large skin defects remains a significant challenge in clinical settings. The lack of epidermal sources, such as autologous skin grafting, limits full-thickness skin defect repair and leads to excessive scar formation. Skin organoids have the potential to generate a complete skin layer, supporting in-situ skin regeneration in the defect area. In this study, skin organoid spheres, created with human keratinocytes, fibroblasts, and endothelial cells, showed a specific structure with a stromal core surrounded by surface keratinocytes. We selected an appropriate bioink and innovatively combined an extrusion-based bioprinting technique with dual-photo source cross-linking technology to ensure the overall mechanical properties of the 3D bioprinted skin organoid. Moreover, the 3D bioprinted skin organoid was customized to match the size and shape of the wound site, facilitating convenient implantation. When applied to full-thickness skin defects in immunodeficient mice, the 3D bioprinted human-derived skin organoid significantly accelerated wound healing through in-situ regeneration, epithelialization, vascularization, and inhibition of excessive inflammation. The combination of skin organoid and 3D bioprinting technology can overcome the limitations of current skin substitutes, offering a novel treatment strategy to address large-area skin defects.