Disclosed herein are synthetic leathers, artificial epidermal layers, artificial dermal layers, layered structures, products produced therefrom and methods of producing the same.

The invention relates to a method for manufacturing a bio-ink by additive deposition, which comprises supplying: a first solution including between 5 and 40 wt. % gelatin; a second solution including between 15 and 35.wt. % alginate; a third solution including between 1 and 15 wt. % fibrinogen, and optionally living cells in suspension; and creating a mixture including: around 35 to 65 vol. % of the first solution; around 15 to 35 vol. % of the second solution; and around 15 to 35 vol. % of the third solution, said proportions being selected so that they add up to 100%. Said bio-ink allows the additive deposition of objects that can be polymerised by means of a solution including calcium ions and thrombin. Said objects can be incubated and can be used as a substitute for body tissue, for example (with added fibroblasts) as skin substitute.

The present disclosure describes a microfluidic chip for culturing and in vitro testing of 3D organotypic cultures. The tests may be performed directly on the organotypic culture in the microfluidic chip. The microfluidic chip includes at least one microfluidic unit which includes two fluidic compartments, such as upper and lower, separated by a permeable supporting structure, one or more access opening for the fluidic compartments, and a set of lids interchangeable with a set of insets. The permeable support structure serves as a support for the organotypic culture. The upper and lower compartments may include inlets and outlets which allow fluids to be perfused into the lower compartment and fluids to be perfused into the upper compartment. The access opening may be closed with a lid or accommodate an inset.

Engineered skin substitutes comprising an outer-facing portion and an inner-facing portion and methods of making the same are provided. The skin substitutes are configured to conform to a shape and a dimension of a body part of a subject, and have at least one surface that circles back on itself so as to enclose at least a portion of the body part. In some instances, dermis and epidermal layers can be formed in an air liquid interface. The exemplary skin substitutes are wearable and can be made to conform to a generic body part or a specific body part from a three-dimensional representation of the body part.

Disclosed are bioprinted, three-dimensional, biological skin tissues comprising: a dermal layer comprising dermal fibroblasts; and an epidermal layer comprising keratinocytes, the epidermal layer in contact with the dermal layer to form the three-dimensional, engineered, biological skin tissue. Also disclosed are arrays of engineered skin tissues and methods of making engineered skin tissues.

Disclosed is a method of producing reconstructed human skin, and particularly a method of producing reconstructed human skin using a culture vessel including an inner chamber surrounded by an inner wall and a porous bottom surface and an outer chamber spaced apart from the inner chamber and configured to surround the inner chamber, including forming an adhesive layer by coating the inner wall with an adhesive material and culturing reconstructed human skin in the culture vessel having the adhesive layer formed thereon.

Disclosed is a method of producing reconstructed human skin including forming a three-dimensional hydrogel scaffold matrix by gelling a matrix solution including a type I collagen solution, forming a coating layer by coating the three-dimensional hydrogel scaffold matrix with type IV collagen, and forming an epidermis by seeding epidermal keratinocytes onto the three-dimensional hydrogel scaffold matrix having the coating layer formed thereon and performing culture.

Disclosed herein is a composite material and a skin test platform material in a form of a membrane, comprising silk fibroin and a crosslinking agent, wherein from 4.7 to 14 wt % of the total dry weight of the material is derived from the crosslinking agent. In one embodiment, the crosslinking agent is polyethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether. The membrane has a surface that may be shaped to mimic human skin structures. Also disclosed herein are methods of forming a composite material, a skin test platform material, and determining a property of a test composition such as an anti-bacterial cleansing composition, a skin care product and a perfume.

Disclosed herein are synthetic leathers, artificial epidermal layers, artificial dermal layers, layered structures, products produced therefrom and methods of producing the same.

The present disclosure relates to methods for culturing human epidermal keratinocytes. When keratinocytes are cultured on plates coated with a laminin containing an alpha-4 chain or an alpha-5 chain, in a xeno-free, chemically defined cell culture medium, they expand efficiently in vitro. Useful cell culture kits for culturing keratinocytes are also described herein, as are methods of using such cells for treatment of burns or chronic wounds.