A new therapeutical strategy for brain lesion repair: bioprinting molecular patterns to guide neuronal rewiring within living brain

Cerebral cortex injuries caused by stroke, head trauma, or medical resections of cerebral tissue do not have any therapeutic option to promote recovery of the lost functions.

These conditions lead to irreversible neuronal loss and the accumulation of neurological deficits due to neuronal network disruption, which gives rise to highly debilitating pathologies associated with a significant health and economic burden and can lead to death (1).The only available treatment for the neurological sequelae caused by cortical damage is limited to rescuing the remaining neurons in acute phases and some physical rehabilitation to promote the plasticity of survived neurons.

However, this potential support is limited and often insufficient to improve significantly patients´ quality of life (1).One of the most promising treatments for the neurological deficits caused by cortical lesions would be the reconstruction of the lost neuronal circuits.

Here, we propose to join the expertise of a Swedish group leading in the study of experimental stem cell-based therapies for treating stroke (Swedish Unit led by Prof.

Zaal Kokaia), with the expertise of an Italian group leading in the ground-breaking intravital 3D bioprinting technology (Italian Unit led by Prof.

Nicola Elvassore) to develop a guided therapeutic approach for cortical brain lesion repair.In this project, we will i) develop a biomaterial suitable for intravital 3D bioprinting specific for neurological applications; ii-iii) test the ability of intravital 3D bioprinting in guiding functional neuronal connection in vitro (ii) and in vivo (iii).The idea of this joint project stems from the successful collaboration established between the Italian and Swedish units in the context of the previous call for an executive program of scientific and technological cooperation between Italy and Sweden (2018-2020).

The excellent results obtained during the previous project put the solid basis to move forward with the present proposal.