Cell assembly for biomedical engineering

In biomedical engineering, the in vitro construction of three-dimensional tissue models with physiological relevance remains a central challenge. Traditional two-dimensional cultures fail to recapitulate the native cellular microenvironment, while existing three-dimensional approaches are often limited by low cell density or complex fabrication processes. This report proposes a multi-level cell assembly strategy that starts from a cell suspension and builds functional tissue constructs through two hierarchical levels. At the first level, superhydrophobic surface culture technology is employed to efficiently assemble dispersed cells into compact cell microspheres, which serve as high‑density three‑dimensional culture units that mimic the cell–cell interactions found in native tissues. At the second level, the prepared cell microspheres are used as a “bio‑ink” for 3D bioprinting, where they are precisely positioned and stacked layer‑by‑layer according to a predesigned architecture; subsequent microsphere fusion generates large‑scale tissue constructs with high cellular density. This multi‑level assembly system provides a novel platform for complex organ construction, disease modeling, and drug screening, and holds promise for advancing the clinical translation of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine through the integration of vascularization strategies and multi‑organ assembly.

Zhou Kui is an associate professor and master's supervisor at Nanchang University, and has been selected for the Jiangxi Province Ganpo Juncai Support Program. Dr. Zhou's main research interests lie in the fields of biomaterials, three-dimensional bioprinting, and tissue engineering. He serves as the principal investigator for projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Jiangxi Provincial Natural Science Foundation. He has published over 30 academic papers in journals such as Ceramics International, Communications Physics, Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, and Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, with a cumulative citation count exceeding 1,000.