AccScience Publishing / IJB / Online First / DOI: 10.36922/IJB026200196
REVIEW ARTICLE
Early Access

In situ bioprinting: Control strategies, bioinks, applications, challenges and future perspectives

Zijun Zheng1 Xinrong Tan1 Huixin Liang2,3 Lan Li2,3* Qing Jiang2,3* Jianping Shi1*
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1 Department of Electrical Engineering and Automation, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China
2 tate Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Division of Sports Medicine and Adult Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Branch of National Clinical Research Center for Orthopedics, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China
3 Jiangsu Engineering Research Center for 3D Bioprinting, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China
Received: 23 March 2026 | Revised: 15 May 2026 | Accepted: 27 May 2026 | Published online: 29 May 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

In situ bioprinting is an emerging technology that directly deposits bioinks on demand within clinical environments to generate targeted tissue structures. It integrates the printing and implantation processes, enabling the cultured constructs to take advantage of the biological microenvironment of the organism. This technology reduces the risk of contamination during transplantation and improves operational precision, thus demonstrating broad application prospects in fields such as tissue repair and biomedical sensor fabrication. This paper discusses the following aspects: from the perspective of control strategies, it summarizes the developmental trend of in situ bioprinting from open-loop control toward closed-loop control, and outlines key procedures including geometric reconstruction, conformal slicing, infill trajectory planning, and parameter mapping in in situ bioprinting.; combined with body-surface and open-exposure scenarios, minimally invasive intervention scenarios, remote energy-driven scenarios, and biosensing scenarios, this review discusses the demands faced by in situ bioprinting in different application settings, the design logic of bioinks, and representative research progress; the printable characteristics and application boundaries of natural polymers, synthetic polymers, and 4D smart materials in in situ bioprinting are summarized. Finally, the challenges faced by this technology and its potential directions for improvement in the future are also discussed.

Keywords
In situ bioprinting
Control strategy
Actuation system
Bioink
Application scenarios
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International Journal of Bioprinting, Electronic ISSN: 2424-8002 Print ISSN: 2424-7723, Published by AccScience Publishing