A low-cost modification to an ordinary plastic 3D printer could help researchers build taller, more complex structures containing living cells. A Phys.org report by Sheila Rayam, identified with the University of Rochester, describes a team led by University of Rochester biologist Anne S. Meyer that adapted a printer for this purpose. The lab says it built the customized system for $450, while specialized 3D bioprinters can cost more than $100,000.
The approach turns the printer into a tool for placing “bio-ink”: a mixture of living cells and a polymer solution. The team removed the plastic-filament extruder and installed a syringe pump to dispense the material. Once printed, the bio-ink hardens into a gel. The researchers can choose which cells to include and shape the material in three dimensions. Depending on the bacteria used, living materials may have applications such as water cleanup or breaking down waste, including plastic; the report presents these as possibilities, not results demonstrated by this printer.
A central challenge is that soft printed forms can collapse before they set. The team addressed this by printing the bio-ink into a supporting gel, called a slurry, that holds it in place and helps it solidify. Meyer said the syringe can both push material out and pull it back, reducing oozing at the edges and helping create sharper shapes. The report says the printer can make hollow cavities as well as structures more than 100 layers tall. Earlier do-it-yourself bioprinters were limited to structures under 20 layers, according to the article.
The supporting gel also matters after printing. The researchers made two types of slurry: one designed to make a print easier to remove, and another for incubation. In the latter, microbes in the printed material could remain alive in the slurry for four weeks or more. The report contrasts this with previous methods in which printed bacteria began to die after about nine days. Keeping cells alive longer could give researchers more time to study living structures, although the report does not describe a direct comparison of the methods under specified conditions.
Taller structures and hollow spaces could also change how cells interact with their surroundings. Meyer explained that designs with a high surface area relative to their volume may allow embedded bacteria to receive signals or nutrients more efficiently and release useful products into their environment more quickly. That is a proposed benefit of the geometry; the report does not say that faster nutrient uptake or product release was measured in this work.
The team’s work is relevant to biofilm research. Biofilms are three-dimensional communities of microorganisms, including bacteria, that attach to surfaces; they can be harmful or beneficial to people. The report says the different incubation approaches could help researchers create engineered materials with more biofilm-like characteristics for study, or with stronger mechanical properties for potential applications. Those are research directions, not evidence that the printer has produced a deployed product or a material ready for a particular use.
The study, by Ram S. Gona and colleagues, was published in ACS Applied Polymer Materials in 2026. The report describes a relatively inexpensive, accessible way for other labs to build a similar printer, with instructions available on GitHub. How well the system performs across different cell types, print designs and applications remains a question for further testing.