A New Vascular Engineering Strategy Using 3D Printed Ice.

Vascular engineering requires integrating dimensional flexibility, strength, and bioactivity to fabricate materials that enable diffusive exchange of oxygen and nutrients between cells and their environment. A recent publication (Biomaterials 2019;192:334-345) has described a new method of creating freestanding, tailorable, and biocompatible vascular constructs by coating ice scaffolds with natural or synthetic polymers.