3D bioprinted coaxial testis model using human induced pluripotent stem cells: A step toward bicompartmental cytoarchitecture and functionalization

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dc.contributor.authorRobinson, Meghan A.
dc.contributor.authorKung, Sonia H.
dc.contributor.authorYoussef, Khaled Y.
dc.contributor.authorScheck, Kali M.
dc.contributor.authorBell, Robert H.
dc.contributor.authorSar, Funda
dc.contributor.authorHaegert, Anne M.
dc.contributor.authorAsmae, M. Mahdi
dc.contributor.authorCheng, Changfeng
dc.contributor.authorYeack, Salina V.
dc.contributor.authorMathur, Bhairvi T.
dc.contributor.authorJiang, Feng
dc.contributor.authorCollins, Colin C.
dc.contributor.authorHach, Farach
dc.contributor.authorWillerth, Stephanie M.
dc.contributor.authorFlannigan, Ryan K.
dc.date.accessioned2026-03-05T17:18:52Z
dc.date.available2026-03-05T17:18:52Z
dc.date.copyright2025
dc.description.abstractFertility preservation following pediatric cancer therapy programs has become a major avenue of infertility research. In vitro spermatogenesis (IVS) aims to generate sperm from banked prepubertal testicular tissues in a lab setting using specialized culture conditions. While successful using rodent tissues, progress with human tissues is limited by the scarcity of human prepubertal testicular tissues for research. This study posits that human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) can model human prepubertal testicular tissue to facilitate the development of human IVS conditions. Testicular cells derived from hiPSCs are characterized for phenotype markers and profiled transcriptionally. HiPSC-derived testicular cells are bioprinted into core�shell constructs representative of testis cytoarchitecture and found to capture functional aspects of prepubertal testicular tissues within 7 days under xeno-free conditions. Moreover, hiPSC-derived Sertoli cells illustrate the capacity to mature under pubertal-like conditions. The utility of the model is tested by comparing 2 methods of supplementing retinoic acid (RA), the vitamin responsible for inducing spermatogenesis. The model reveals a significant gain in activity under microsphere-released RA compared to RA medium supplementation, indicating that the fragility of free RA in vitro may be a contributing factor to the molecular dysfunction observed in human IVS studies to date.
dc.description.reviewstatusReviewed
dc.description.scholarlevelFaculty
dc.description.sponsorshipThis study was funded by a CIHR Project Grant, NSERC DG, Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research Health Professional Investigator Grant, American Urology Care Foundation Rising Star Award, and Canadian Foundation For Innovation.
dc.identifier.citationRobinson, M. A., Kung, S. H., Youssef, K. Y., Scheck, K. M., Bell, R. H., Sar, F., Haegert, A. M., Asmae, M. M., Cheng, C., Yeack, S. V., Mathur, B. T., Jiang, F., Collins, C. C., Hach, F., Willerth, S. M., & Flannigan, R. K. (2025). 3D bioprinted coaxial testis model using human induced pluripotent stem cells: A step toward bicompartmental cytoarchitecture and functionalization. Advanced Healthcare Materials, 14(10), e2402606. https://doi.org/10.1002/adhm.202402606
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1002/adhm.202402606
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1828/23382
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherAdvanced Healthcare Materials
dc.rightsCC BY 4.0en
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subjectbioprinting
dc.subjecthuman induced pluripotent stem cell
dc.subjectin vitro spermatogenesis
dc.subjectmicrosphere delivery
dc.subjectsingle cell RNA sequencing
dc.subject.departmentDepartment of Mechanical Engineering
dc.title3D bioprinted coaxial testis model using human induced pluripotent stem cells: A step toward bicompartmental cytoarchitecture and functionalization
dc.typeArticle

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