具体实施方式：
[0038]It would be desirable to identify conditions and equipment that are suitable for preparing objects comprising poly-4-hydroxybutyrate or copolymers thereof by 3D printing. It would be particularly desirable to identify methods to 3D print objects from P4HB and copolymers thereof that provide good quality objects, and processes that can run continuously without interruption of the print job.
[0039]In one preferred embodiment, it would be desirable to identify a FFF process that allows continuous production of objects comprising P4HB and copolymers thereof, and overcomes the following issues that are encountered when using standard FFF equipment to print these polymers: (i) inconsistent feeding of the filament into the hot end due to loss of traction of the feeder mechanism on the filament; (ii) plugging of the polymer prior to entry into the hot end; (iii) significant reduction in polymer molecular weight due to slow print speeds; (iv) poor print quality due to slow solidification of the polymer; and (v) jamming of the filament feed or slippage of the filament feed due to lack of uniformity of the diameter of the filament, or under/oversizing the diameter of the filament.
[0040]The new equipment and methods described herein make it possible to continuously print P4HB and copolymers thereof, and provide significant improvements in print quality, structural integrity (which is a function of the continuity of the printed line, layer to layer adhesion, and optionally adhesion of the first layer to the stage), and print speed. In one embodiment, the new methods utilize new equipment that makes it possible to print polymers such as P4HB and copolymers thereof that: (i) are extremely viscous in the melt and require very high processing temperatures, and (ii) solidify very slowly from the melt. In one preferred embodiment, continuous printing by FFF of P4HB and copolymers thereof is made possible by improvements that: (a) significantly reduce the temperature of the filament as it is fed into the hot end without decreasing the melt processing temperature, (b) reduce the temperature of the polymer prior to entry into the hot end without decreasing the melt processing temperature, (c) reduce the loss of molecular weight of the polymer during printing, (d) facilitate more rapid solidification of the polymer after printing by cooling of the extrudate, (e) produce filaments for printing with highly uniform diameters, and (f) define specific ratios of the diameters of the filament versus the diameters of the melt tube.
[0041]In order to continuously print P4HB and copolymers thereof, FFF equipment has been improved with a number of new features that include a system to significantly cool the temperature of the filament at the top of the heat sink and before it enters the hot end, and a method to cool the printed polymer exiting the nozzle in the hot end. In one embodiment, the cooling system of the improved FFF equipment comprises a shroud surrounding the heat sink incorporating an air nozzle directed at the lowest fin of the heat sink and an insulator and heat shield located between the heat sink and the hot end. The heat shield prevents high pressure air hitting the hot end which can result in heating failures, and thermal errors of printer hardware including interruption and termination of printing. The insulator prevents the heat shield being exposed to the high temperature in the hot end required to print P4HB and copolymers thereof which would otherwise deform the heat shield. In order to improve the print quality, the new FFF 3D printer may further incorporate a novel print stage designed to increase the solidification rate of the hot extrudate of P4HB or copolymers thereof, and also to improve the print quality of the first print layer. In a further embodiment, the new FFF 3D printer incorporates a print stage made from aluminum that can be cooled. The use of an aluminum stage results in a significantly improved first print layer and layer adhesion of P4HB or copolymer thereof due to the evenness of the aluminum surface compared to current commercial stages typically made from ethylene imine based (PEI) films or glass. Furthermore, cooling of the aluminum stage facilitates more rapid solidification of the polymer which is otherwise slow to solidify, and allows the underlying layer of polymer to harden before a new layer of polymer is printed on top. The more rapid solidification resulting from cooling of the stage results in significantly improved print quality.
[0042]In addition to the development of new equipment and methods to 3D print P4HB and copolymers thereof by FFF, methods have also been developed to 3D print P4HB and copolymers by fused pellet deposition (FPD), melt extrusion deposition (MED), selective laser melting (SLM), printing of slurries and solutions using a coagulation bath, and printing using a binding solution and granules of powder.
[0043]In a preferred embodiment, the new 3D printers and methods disclosed herein may be used to produce 3D printed objects comprising P4HB and copolymers thereof. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the new 3D printers and methods disclosed herein may be used to produce 3D printed objects comprising P4HB and copolymers thereof that may be used to produce medical implants for uses that include plastic and reconstructive surgery including mastopexy and breast reconstruction, general surgery including hernia repairs and anti-adhesion devices, tissue engineering, drug delivery, pelvic floor reconstruction, treatment of stress urinary incontinence, nerve repair, periodontal surgery, oral surgery, orthopedic surgery, stenting, vascular and cardiovascular surgery. The new 3D printers make it possible to produce three-dimensional medical devices comprising P4HB and copolymers thereof that cannot be produced by other fabrication methods. Optionally, the devices may further comprise bioactive agents, including antibiotics, and other additives. In particularly preferred embodiment, the method of making 3D objects and the resulting 3D printed objects do not include a blowing/foaming agent. For example, a blowing/foaming agent may be a substance having a gas volume of 100 to 350 mL/g, which decomposes at a temperature higher than the decomposition temperature thereof, for example, at a printer nozzle temperature to release gas. Examples of the foaming agent include azodicarbonamide, modified azodicarbonamide, p-toluenesulfonyl semicarbazide, p-toluenesulfonyl hydrazide, but are not limited to, hydrazide, p-toluenesulfonyl acetone hydrazide, 5-phenyltetrazole, sodium bicarbonate, or combinations thereof. For example, the foaming agent may be a substance that decomposes at 130 to 250° C. to generate gas.
I. Definitions
[0044]“3D Printing” as generally used herein means a computer controlled process whereby a three-dimensional object can be fabricated from a 3D CAM model using additive manufacturing.
[0045]“Additive manufacturing” as generally used herein means a process by which an object is formed by depositing layer upon layer of material.
[0046]“Bioactive agent” is used herein to refer to therapeutic, prophylactic or diagnostic agents, such as agents that promote healing and the regeneration of host tissue and therapeutic agents that prevent, inhibit or eliminate a disease or disorder.
[0047]“Bioceramic” means a ceramic suitable for use or replacement in the human body.
[0048]“Biocompatible” as generally used herein means the biological response to the material or device being appropriate for the device's intended application in vivo. Any metabolites of these materials should also be biocompatible.
[0049]“Blend” as generally used herein means a physical combination of different polymers, as opposed to a copolymer formed of two or more different monomers.
[0050]“Ceramic” means an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling.
[0051]“Cold end” as generally used herein means the part of the equipment for FFF that is responsible for feeding the filament into the extruder.
[0052]“Copolymers of poly-4-hydroxybutyrate” as generally used herein means any polymer including 4-hydroxybutyrate with one or more different hydroxy acid units.
[0053]“DOD” as used herein means drop-on-demand printing.
[0054]“Feed rate” as generally used herein in FFF means the speed at which the filament is fed or loaded into the heat sink.
[0055]“FFF” as used herein means fused filament fabrication.
[0056]“FPD” as used herein means fused pellet deposition.
[0057]“Heat sink” as generally used herein refers to a heat exchanger that transfers and dissipates heat generated by the hot end in FFF.
[0058]“Hot end” as generally used herein means the part of the equipment for FFF that is responsible for heating the filament, namely the heater block and nozzle.
[0059]“Implant” as generally used herein include medical devices that are used in vivo as well as those that contact the surface of the body or are inserted into any orifice of the body.
[0060]“MED” as used herein means melt extrusion deposition.
[0061]“Molecular weight” as used herein, unless otherwise specified, refers to the weight average molecular weight (Mw), not the number average molecular weight (Mn), and is measured by GPC relative to polystyrene.
[0062]“Poly-4-hydroxybutyrate” as generally used herein means a homopolymer including 4-hydroxybutyrate units. It may be referred to herein as P4HB or TephaFLEX® biomaterial (manufactured by Tepha, Inc., Lexington, Mass.).
[0063]“Print quality” as generally used herein refers to the resolution of the print in the X, Y and Z directions of a Cartesian coordinate system (wherein the Z direction is the height of a printed layer). An object printed with good print quality has print dimensions that are within 10% of the expected value. For example, an object printed with a resolution of 100 microns in the X and Y directions, and 50 microns in the Z direction has good print quality if the line width in the X and Y directions is between 90 and 110 microns, and between 45 and 55 microns in the Z direction.
[0064]“Print speed” as generally used herein in FFF means the linear speed of the moving print stage, the linear speed of the moving nozzle, or the linear speed that results from the combination of the linear speed of the print stage and linear speed of the moving nozzle.
[0065]“Residence time” as generally used herein refers to the average time in seconds that a one cubic millimeter volume of molten polymer spends in the hot end in FFF, and is typically expressed as s/mm3, or the average time that the polymer spends in the horizontal extruder in MED and is typically expressed as s/cm3 or min/cm3.
[0066]“Resorbable” as generally used herein means the material is broken down in the body and eventually eliminated from the body. The terms “resorbable”, “degradable”, “erodible”, and “absorbable” are used somewhat interchangeably in the literature in the field, with or without the prefix “bio”. Herein, these terms will be used interchangeably to describe material broken down and gradually absorbed or eliminated by the body, whether degradation is due mainly to hydrolysis or mediated by metabolic processes.
[0067]“SLM” as used herein means selective laser melting.
II. Compositions
[0068]Methods and improved 3D printers have been developed to prepare three-dimensional objects comprising P4HB and copolymers thereof. The objects can be used in vivo for soft or hard tissue repair, regeneration and remodeling applications. In a preferred embodiment, the objects are medical devices or may be converted into medical devices through further processing.
[0069]A. P4HB Homopolymer & Copolymer
[0070]Poly-4-hydroxybutyrate (P4HB) and copolymers thereof can be produced using transgenic fermentation methods, see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,548,569 to Williams et al., and are produced commercially, for example, by Tepha, Inc. (Lexington, Mass.). Poly-4-hydroxybutyrate (P4HB, TephaFLEX® biomaterial) is a strong, pliable absorbable thermoplastic polyester.
[0071]The P4HB polymer belongs to a larger class of materials called polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) that are produced by numerous microorganisms (see, for example, Steinbüchel A., et al. Diversity of Bacterial Polyhydroxyalkanoic Acids, FEMS Microbial. Lett. 128:219-228 (1995)). In nature, these polyesters are produced as storage granules inside cells, and serve to regulate energy metabolism. They are also of commercial interest because of their thermoplastic properties, biodegradability and relative ease of production.
[0072]Chemical synthesis of P4HB has been attempted, but it has been impossible to produce the polymer with a sufficiently high molecular weight that is necessary for most applications, including melt processing (see Hori, Y., et al., Polymer 36:4703-4705 (1995); Houk, K. N., et al., J. Org. Chem., 2008, 73 (7), 2674-2678; and Moore, T., et al., Biomaterials 26:3771-3782 (2005)). In fact, it has been calculated to be thermodynamically impossible to chemically synthesize a high molecular weight homopolymer under normal conditions (Moore, T., et al., Biomaterials 26:3771-3782 (2005)). Chemical synthesis of P4HB instead yields short chain oily oligomers that lack the desirable thermoplastic properties of the high molecular weight P4HB polymers produced by biosynthetic methods.
[0073]U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,245,537, 6,623,748, 7,244,442, 8,231,889, 9,290,612, and 9,480,780 describe methods of making PHAs with little to no endotoxin, which are suitable for medical applications. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,548,569, 6,838,493, 6,867,247, 7,268,205, 7,179,883, 7,268,205, 7,553,923, 7,618,448 and 7,641,825 and 9,162,010 describe use of PHAs to make medical devices. Copolymers of P4HB include 4-hydroxybutyrate copolymerized with 3-hydroxybutyrate or glycolic acid (U.S. Pat. No. 8,039,237 to Martin and Skraly, U.S. Pat. No. 6,316,262 to Huisman et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 6,323,010 to Skraly et al.). Methods to control molecular weight of PHA polymers have been disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 5,811,272 to Snell et al.
[0074]PHAs with controlled degradation and degradation in vivo of less than one year are disclosed by U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,548,569, 6,610,764, 6,828,357, 6,867,248, and 6,878,758 to Williams et al. and WO 99/32536 to Martin et al. Applications of P4HB have been reviewed in Williams, S. F., et al., Polyesters, III, 4:91-127 (2002), and by Martin, D. et al. Medical Applications of Poly-4-hydroxybutyrate: A Strong Flexible Absorbable Biomaterial, Biochem. Eng. J. 16:97-105 (2003). Medical devices and applications of P4HB have also been disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 6,548,569 to Williams et al. Several patents including U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,555,123, 6,585,994, 7,025,980, 9,532,867, and 9,277,986 describe the use of PHAs in tissue repair and engineering. U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,034,270, 8,016,883, 8,287,909, 8,747,468, 9,511,169, 9,457,127 and 9,555,155 disclose fibers, non-wovens, and textiles made by melt extrusion of P4HB.
[0075]Sodian et al. Application of stereolithography for scaffold fabrication for tissue engineered heart valves, ASAIO Journal 48:12-16 (2002) discloses the fabrication of molds to make tissue engineered heart valves comprising P4HB using 3D printing, but does not disclose 3D printing of P4HB and copolymers thereof or 3D printed objects comprising P4HB and copolymers thereof.
[0076]The processes described herein are used with poly-4-hydroxybutyrate (P4HB) and copolymers thereof. P4HB homopolymer can be obtained from Tepha, Inc. of Lexington, Mass., USA. The P4HB homopolymer can have a weight average molecular weight, Mw, within the range of 50 kDa to 1,200 kDa (by GPC relative to polystyrene) and more preferably from 100 kDa to 1,000 kDa and even more preferably from 100 kDa to 500 kDa. The polymer may include the P4HB homopolymer or copolymer blended with other absorbable polymers, additives, or bioactive agents, including cells.
[0077]B. Blends of P4HB & Copolymers Thereof
[0078]Objects comprising blends of P4HB or copolymers thereof may be printed using the methods and equipment disclosed herein. In one embodiment, P4HB and copolymers thereof can be blended with other absorbable polymers, including, but not limited to: poly(lactides); poly(glycolides); poly(lactide-co-glycolides); poly(lactic acid); poly(glycolic acid); poly(lactic acid-co-glycolic acids); polycaprolactones; poly(orthoesters); polyanhydrides; poly(phosphazenes); polyhydroxyalkanoates (including P3HB and poly-3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate, PHBV); synthetically or biologically prepared polyesters (including polyesters with one or more of the following monomeric units: glycolic, lactic; trimethylene carbonate, p-dioxanone, or ε-caprolactone); poly(lactide-co-caprolactones); polycarbonates; tyrosine polycarbonates; polyamides (including synthetic and natural polyamides, polypeptides, and poly(amino acids)); polyesteramides; poly(dioxanones); poly(alkylene alkylates); polyethers (such as polyethylene glycol, PEG, and polypropylene oxide, PPO) or other hydrophilic or water soluble polymers such as polyvinyl pyrrolidones (PVP); polyurethanes; polyetheresters; polyacetals; polycyanoacrylates; poly(oxyethylene)/poly(oxypropylene) copolymers; polyacetals, polyketals; polyphosphates; (phosphorous-containing) polymers; polyphosphoesters; polyalkylene oxalates; polyalkylene succinates; poly(maleic acids); chitin; chitosan; modified chitosan; biocompatible polysaccharides; biocompatible copolymers (including block copolymers or random copolymers); with blocks of other biocompatible or biodegradable polymers, for example, poly(lactide), poly(lactide-co-glycolide, or polycaprolactone or combinations thereof. Other polymers and materials that can be printed with P4HB and copolymers thereof include alginate, silk, glycerol, gelatin, hyaluronic acid and derivatives thereof, collagen, polyvinyl alcohol, and hydrogels.
[0079]C. Incorporation of Additives into Compositions of P4HB and Copolymers Thereof
[0080]Certain additives may be incorporated into the compositions comprising P4HB and copolymers thereof prior to 3D printing of the compositions. In a preferred embodiment, the additives are biocompatible, and even more preferably the additives are both biocompatible and resorbable.
[0081]In one embodiment, the additives may be nucleating agents and/or plasticizers. These additives may be added in sufficient quantity to produce the desired result. In general, these additives may be added in amounts of up to 20% by weight. Nucleating agents may be incorporated to increase the rate of crystallization of the compositions comprising P4HB and copolymers thereof. Such agents may be used to improve the printing of the objects and the mechanical properties of the objects. Preferred nucleating agents include, but are not limited to, salts of organic acids such as calcium citrate, polymers or oligomers of PHA polymers and copolymers, high melting polymers such as PGA, talc, micronized mica, calcium carbonate, ammonium chloride, and aromatic amino acids such as tyrosine and phenylalanine. Plasticizers that may be incorporated include, but are not limited to, di-n-butyl maleate, methyl laureate, dibutyl fumarate, di(2-ethylhexyl) (dioctyl) maleate, paraffin, dodecanol, olive oil, soybean oil, polytetramethylene glycols, methyl oleate, n-propyl oleate, tetrahydofurfuryl oleate, epoxidized linseed oil, 2-ethyl hexyl epoxytallate, glycerol triacetate, methyl linoleate, dibutyl fumarate, methyl acetyl ricinoleate, acetyl tri(n-butyl) citrate, acetyl triethyl citrate, tri(n-butyl) citrate, triethyl citrate, bis(2-hydroxyethyl) dimerate, butyl ricinoleate, glyceryl tri-(acetyl ricinoleate), methyl ricinoleate, n-butyl acetyl rincinoleate, propylene glycol ricinoleate, diethyl succinate, diisobutyl adipate, dimethyl azelate, di(n-hexyl) azelate, tri-butyl phosphate, and mixtures thereof. Particularly preferred plasticizers are citrate esters.
[0082]In another embodiment, the additives are contrast agents, radiopaque markers or radioactive substances.
[0083]In yet another embodiment, the additives are ceramics, more preferably bioceramics, and even more preferably resorbable bioceramics. Examples of resorbable bioceramics that can be incorporated into the compositions of P4HB and copolymers thereof prior to printing include tricalcium phosphate (α and β forms of tricalcium phosphate (TCP)—with a nominal composition of Ca3(PO4)2), biphasic calcium phosphate (BCP), hydroxylapatite, calcium sulfate, calcium carbonate, and other calcium phosphate salt-based bioceramics. Bioactive glasses may also be incorporated. Bioactive glasses include bioactive glasses composed of SiO2, Na2O, CaO and P2O5 in specific proportions. In an embodiment, the P4HB blends comprise resorbable bioceramics with a size distribution ranging from nanoparticles to microparticles. In a preferred embodiment, the ceramics have particle sizes of less than 100 microns. In a still further embodiment, the additives may be cross-linking agents.
[0084]In some particularly preferred embodiments, the disclosed compositions and methods do not include a foaming/blowing agent. For example, a blowing/foaming agent may be a substance having a gas volume of 100 to 350 mL/g, which decomposes at a temperature higher than the decomposition temperature thereof, for example, at a printer nozzle temperature to release gas. Examples of the foaming agent include azodicarbonamide, modified azodicarbonamide, p-toluenesulfonyl semicarbazicle, p-toluenesuifonyl hydrazide, but are not limited to, hydrazide, p-toluenesulfonyl acetone hydrazide, 5-phenyltetrazole, sodium bicarbonate, or combinations thereof. For example, the foaming agent may be a substance that decomposes at 130 to 250° C. to generate gas.
[0085]D. Incorporation of Bioactive Agents and Cells into Compositions of P4HB and Copolymers Thereof
[0086]If desired, the compositions of P4HB and copolymers thereof may incorporate bioactive agents. These agents may be added prior to printing of the compositions into objects or after the objects have been formed.
[0087]In one embodiment, the bioactive agents and the composition comprising P4HB or copolymer thereof, may be dissolved in a solvent or solvent system in order to disperse the bioactive agent in the polymer, and the solvent may then be removed by evaporation. Preferred solvents include methylene chloride, chloroform, tetrahydrofuran, acetone, dimethylformamide, and 1,4-dioxane.
[0088]Examples of bioactive agents that can be incorporated into the compositions of P4HB and copolymers thereof, include, but are not limited to, physiologically or pharmacologically active substances that act locally or systemically in the body. Bioactive agents include biologically, physiologically, or pharmacologically active substances that act locally or systemically in the human or animal body. Examples can include, but are not limited to, small-molecule drugs, anti-inflammatory agents, immunomodulatory agents, molecules that promote cell migration, molecules that promote or retard cell division, molecules that promote or retard cell proliferation and differentiation, molecules that stimulate phenotypic modification of cells, molecules that promote or retard angiogenesis, molecules that promote or retard vascularization, molecules that promote or retard extracellular matrix disposition, signaling ligands, platelet rich plasma, peptides, proteins, glycoproteins, anesthetics, hormones, antibodies, growth factors, fibronectin, laminin, vitronectin, integrins, antimicrobials, steroids, hydroxyapatite, silver particles, vitamins, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, chitosan and derivatives thereof, alginate and derivatives thereof, collagen, sugars, polysaccharides, nucleotides, oligonucleotides, lipids, lipoproteins, hyaluronic acid and derivatives thereof, allograft material, xenograft material, ceramics, nucleic acid molecules, antisense molecules, aptamers, siRNA, nucleic acids, and combinations thereof.
[0089]Antimicrobial agents that may be incorporated into the compositions of P4HB and copolymers thereof, or coated on those compositions, include, but are not limited to, antibacterial drugs, antiviral agents, antifungal agents, and antiparisitic drugs. Antimicrobial agents include substances that kill or inhibit the growth of microbes such as microbicidal and microbiostatic agents. Antimicrobial agents that may be incorporated into the compositions of P4HB and copolymers thereof, include, but are not limited to: rifampin; minocycline and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; triclosan; chlorhexidine; vancomycin and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; tetracycline and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt, and derivatives; gentamycin; cephalosporin antimicrobials; aztreonam; cefotetan and its disodium salt; loracarbef; cefoxitin and its sodium salt; cefazolin and its sodium salt; cefaclor; ceftibuten and its sodium salt; ceftizoxime; ceftizoxime sodium salt; cefoperazone and its sodium salt; cefuroxime and its sodium salt; cefuroxime axetil; cefprozil; ceftazidime; cefotaxime and its sodium salt; cefadroxil; ceftazidime and its sodium salt; cephalexin; cefamandole nafate; cefepime and its hydrochloride, sulfate, and phosphate salt; cefdinir and its sodium salt; ceftriaxone and its sodium salt; cefixime and its sodium salt; cefpodoxime proxetil; meropenem and its sodium salt; imipenem and its sodium salt; cilastatin and its sodium salt; azithromycin; clarithromycin; dirithromycin; erythromycin and hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salts, ethylsuccinate, and stearate forms thereof, clindamycin; clindamycin hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; lincomycin and hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt thereof, tobramycin and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; streptomycin and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; neomycin and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; acetyl sulfisoxazole; colistimethate and its sodium salt; quinupristin; dalfopristin; amoxicillin; ampicillin and its sodium salt; clavulanic acid and its sodium or potassium salt; penicillin G; penicillin G benzathine, or procaine salt; penicillin G sodium or potassium salt; carbenicillin and its disodium or indanyl disodium salt; piperacillin and its sodium salt; ticarcillin and its disodium salt; sulbactam and its sodium salt; moxifloxacin; ciprofloxacin; ofloxacin; levofloxacins; norfloxacin; gatifloxacin; trovafloxacin mesylate; alatrofloxacin mesylate; trimethoprim; sulfamethoxazole; demeclocycline and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; doxycycline and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; oxytetracycline and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; chlortetracycline and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; metronidazole; dapsone; atovaquone; rifabutin; linezolide; polymyxin B and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt; sulfacetamide and its sodium salt; clarithromycin; and silver ions, salts, and complexes. In a preferred embodiment, the antimicrobial agents incorporated into the compositions of P4HB and copolymers thereof or coated on those compositions are (i) rifampin and (ii) minocycline and its hydrochloride, sulfate, or phosphate salt.
[0090]If desired, the compositions of P4HB and copolymers thereof may incorporate cells, including, cells of epithelial, connective, muscular and nervous tissues. Such compositions may be printed to form bioprinted objects, including tissue engineering scaffolds. The latter may be used, for example, in the repair, regeneration or replacement of tissue structures and organs, including skeletal defects and bone regeneration.
III. Methods and Equipment for 3D Printing of Compositions Comprising P4HB and Copolymers Thereof
[0091]A. Equipment for FFF of P4HB and Copolymers Thereof
[0092]FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a typical equipment set up for 3D printing by FFF. The equipment comprises a feeder mechanism for the filament, a heat sink that is cooled by a microblower directing air all along the heat sink, a transition zone between the heat sink and hot end, a hot end comprising a heater block and nozzle, and a stock glass printing stage. This equipment is suitable for 3D printing a wide variety of polymers such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polylactic acid (PLA), polystyrene (PS), nylon, and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS). Attempts to print P4HB using this equipment setup, failed, however, because of differences in properties between P4HB and the properties of the polymers that the equipment in FIG. 1 was designed to process. When 3D printing of P4HB was attempted with this equipment, the high temperature required in the hot end was conducted to the cold end with dire consequences. As shown in Table 1, when the P4HB polymer was heated in the hot end to 280° C., the temperature measured at the bottom of the heat sink rose to 60° C. and the temperature at the top of the heat sink increased to 56.5° C. Since P4HB has a melting temperature of about 60° C. and becomes soft in the range of 42 to 58° C., the temperatures in the heat sink were above the range at which P4HB softens, and very close to the melting temperature of P4HB at the bottom of the heat sink. These high temperatures in the heat sink resulted in the formation of a soft plug of P4HB at the bottom of the heat sink, and loss of traction on the filament at the top of the heat sink causing print failure.
[0093]A number of further attempts were made to print P4HB using the equipment shown in FIG. 1 by lowering the temperature in the hot end. The temperatures measured at the top of the heat sink (position A), the bottom of the heat sink (position B), and at the transition zone (position C) when the temperature in the hot end was decreased are also shown in Table 1. Decreasing the temperature in the hot end did result in some decrease in the temperatures at the top and the bottom of the heat sink, however, problems continued to be encountered because the temperatures in the heat sink were still too close to the softening temperature of P4HB. As is evident from Table 1, when temperatures in the hot end were 180-280° C., the temperatures at the top of the heat sink ranged from 45° C. to 56.5° C. due to heat creep from the hot end. Even at the lowest temperature (180° C. in the hot end) where the melt viscosity of P4HB was still fairly high and print quality was not optimal, slippage of the driving gears in the feeder mechanism continued to occur, due to softening of the P4HB filament, resulting in inconsistent feeding, poor print quality, and eventually interruption of printing. The microblower was incapable of providing sufficient cooling to produce a thermal profile along the heat sink necessary for continuous printing of P4HB and copolymers thereof.
[0094]TABLE 1Relationship between temperatures in hot and cold ends during attempted processing of P4HB using standard FFF equipment shown in FIG. 1Zone/Nozzle180200220240260280Temp. (° C.)Top of heat454648495356.5sink, ABottom of heat474848525760sink, BTransition6589100104118127zone, C
[0095]A number of improvements were made to the standard equipment set up for FFF shown in FIG. 1 in order to prevent the P4HB filament from slipping in the feeder mechanism, and to prevent the formation of soft plugs at the bottom of the heat sink. The improvements are shown in FIG. 2, and include (i) the incorporation of a shroud around the heat sink with a compressed air line that focuses a stream of cooling air on the bottom fin of the heat sink, (ii) the incorporation of a heat shield in the transition zone between the hot end and the heat sink to prevent cooling air from impacting the hot end and damaging the printed structure on the stage, (iii) the incorporation of an insulator between the hot end and the heat shield to prevent distortion of the heat shield by the heat from the hot end, and (iv) replacement of the printing stage with a stage that has a flatter surface, and can be cooled. These improvements make it possible to fabricate objects of P4HB and copolymers thereof by FFF using the conditions described herein.
[0096]As a result of the improvements described above and shown in FIG. 2, it was possible to lower the temperature of the heat sink during FFF of P4HB and copolymers thereof, and obtain objects with good print quality. Table 2 shows the improved temperature profile of the heat sink and transition zone that resulted from the improvements when