Fabrication of gelatin-based printable inks with improved stiffness as well as antibacterial and UV-shielding properties

Gelatin-based inks have a broad range of applications in bioprinting for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine due to their biocompatibility, ease of modification, degradability, and rapid gelation induced by low temperature. However, gelatin-derived inks prepared through low-temperature treatment have poor mechanical properties that limit their applications. To solve this problem, we designed polyacrylamide/gelatin/silver nanoparticle (PAAm-GelatinAgNPs) ink to improve gelatin-based hydrogels. The ink is based on double networks, in which the physically cross-linked gelatin as the first network and covalently cross-linked PAAm as the second network. It was found that the presence of PAAm increased the tensile and compression strength of the gelatin-based ink. Moreover, silver nanoparticles endowed the antibacterial properties to the gelatin-based ink and were able to shield the UV irradiation and damages to rat skin. In addition, this ink showed the shear thinning property; Consequently it succeeded in printing complex 3D scaffolds such as the cube, five-pointed star, flower, and university logo of “SEU”. In summary, this ink presents a new strategy for the modification of gelatin and offers new potential applications for customized therapy of antimicrobial and anti-UV damage to tissues.