Wendy Balestri

By Andrea Domingues Goncalves, Wendy Balestri and Yvonne Reinwald

Regenerative therapies aim to develop novel treatments to restore tissue function. Several strategies have been investigated including the use of biomedical implants as three-dimensional artificial matrices to fill the defect side, to replace damaged tissues or for drug delivery. Bioactive implants are used to provide growth environments for tissue formation for a variety of applications including nerve, lung, skin and orthopaedic tissues. Implants can either be biodegradable or non-degradable, should be nontoxic and biocompatible, and should not trigger an immunological response. Implants can be designed to provide suitable surface area-to-volume ratios, ranges of porosities, pore interconnectivities and adequate mechanical strengths. Due to their broad range of properties, numerous biomaterials have been used for implant manufacture. To enhance an implant’s bioactivity, materials can be functionalised in several ways, including surface modification using proteins, incorporation of bioactive drugs, growth factors and/or cells. These strategies have been employed to create local bioactive microenvironments to direct cellular responses and to promote tissue regeneration and controlled drug release. This chapter provides an overview of current bioactive biomedical implants, their fabrication and applications, as well as implant materials used in drug delivery and tissue regeneration. Additionally, cell- and drug-based bioactivity, manufacturing considerations and future trends will be discussed.

Part of the book: Biomaterials

By Ying Betty Li, Wendy Balestri, Lea Desbiens, Matthew Maple, Tarun Krishna Boppana, Yvonne Reinwald and Anna Jezierski

This chapter provides an in-depth examination of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and explores the potential of 3D bioprinting technologies in advancing TNBC research. It highlights how the combination of innovative biomaterials, coupled with 3D bioprinting, enables the creation of highly complex, physiologically relevant tumor microenvironments (TMEs), thereby enhancing our understanding of TNBC biology, improving the prediction of drug responses, and refining in vitro models for preclinical testing. The chapter reviews key innovations in biomaterials, focusing on natural bioactive hydrogels and tumor-mimicking extracellular matrices (ECMs), which play a critical role in developing models that more accurately reflect the heterogeneous nature of TNBC. It also covers advanced, multicellular bioprinting strategies that incorporate diverse cell types, including cancer, stromal, and immune cells, into structured, tumor-like constructs that mimic the spatial organization and interactions within the TME. These approaches significantly improve the predictive accuracy of TNBC models in drug screening, biomarker discovery, and treatment optimization, with the ultimate goal of facilitating the development of targeted therapies and personalized medicine. The chapter concludes by addressing current challenges, such as replicating the full complexity of tumors and scaling these models for broader use, while also highlighting promising future directions for enhancing the clinical relevance of TNBC in vitro models.

Part of the book: Regenerative Biomaterials