AccScience Publishing / IJB / Online First / DOI: 10.36922/IJB025500517
REVIEW ARTICLE
Early Access

New frontiers in bioengineering: A perspective view of the open challenges in the bioprinting field

Irene Chiesa1† Elisa Batoni1† Amedeo Franco Bonatti1 Costanza Daddi1 Ginevra Pegollo1 Aurora De Acutis1 Mauro Di Stasi2* Carmelo De Maria1 Giovanni Vozzi1†* Gabriele Maria Fortunato1†
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1 Dept. Of Information Engineering and Research Centre “E. Piaggio”, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
2 Dept. of Pharmacy, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
†These authors contributed equally to this work.
Received: 12 December 2025 | Accepted: 28 January 2026 | Published online: 25 February 2026
© 2026 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
Abstract

Bioprinting has emerged as a transformative technology in biofabrication, enabling the precise spatial arrangement of biomaterials, living cells, and bioactive factors to generate functional three-dimensional biological constructs. Recent advances are redefining the scope and impact of this field through innovations in both materials and methodologies. Multimaterial and multiscale printing strategies are enhancing the ability to replicate the hierarchical architecture and functional gradients of native tissues, while the valorization of waste-derived biomaterials for bioink formulation is introducing sustainable solutions without compromising performance. The integration of bioprinting with organ-on-a-chip systems is providing highly sophisticated in vitro models for disease research and drug discovery, and in situ bioprinting techniques are opening new possibilities for direct, patient-specific tissue repair. Parallel to these developments, 4D bioprinting introduces the dimension of time, allowing printed constructs to change shape, properties, or function in response to environmental stimuli. The application of artificial intelligence in process monitoring and quality control is improving reproducibility, predictive accuracy, and manufacturing efficiency, thus paving the way for standardized production. Looking ahead, the emerging concept of 5D bioprinting—integrating spatial, temporal, and functional control—suggests a paradigm shift in the design and manufacturing of living systems. Collectively, these advances are broadening the technological capabilities of biofabrication and accelerating the translation of bioprinting from experimental settings toward transformative clinical and industrial applications. This review synthesizes current progress while outlining the opportunities and challenges that will shape the next generation of bioprinting technologies.

Keywords
Multimaterial and multiscale bioprinting
Waste biomaterials
AI-enhanced quality control
In situ bioprinting
Organ-on-a-chip
4D and 5D bioprinting
Funding
This research has been supported by the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation programme (grant no. 101191747, TENTACLE; grant no. 101191804, LUMINATE; grant no. 101178568, DAEDALUS) and from the European Union - Next Generation EU, Mission 4 - Component 1 (CUP I53D23002200006), through the Prin2022 Prometheus project, “4D printing self-deploying bio-enabled polymer scaffolds for the non-invasive treatment of bleeding intestinal ulcers” (grant no.: 2022BZLTTK). Additional funding was provided by the European Union – Next Generation EU, Mission 4 - Component 2, Investment 1.5 (CUP I53C22000780001) under the Tuscany Health Ecosystem, Spoke 4: Nanotechnologies for diagnosis and therapy. This work was also partially supported by the Italian Ministry of Education and Research (MUR) within the framework of the FoReLab and CrossLab projects (Departments of Excellence).
Conflict of interest
The authors declare they have no competing interests.
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International Journal of Bioprinting, Electronic ISSN: 2424-8002 Print ISSN: 2424-7723, Published by AccScience Publishing