Inkjet dispensing technologies: recent advances for novel drug discovery

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Inkjet-dispensing printing is a promising additive manufacturing method for pharmaceutical applications such as drug discovery. The unique advantages of this technology, including low cost, programmability, high resolution, high throughput, high speed, and biocompatibility, may reduce the financial resources needed to discover new drug candidates. Sophisticated and miniaturized assays have been developed to accomplish drug discovery and drug screening using modern inkjet dispensing printers.

Areas covered: This paper reviews recent advancements in the field of inkjet printer technology for drug discovery. Various types of inkjet printers and their recent use for the drug discovery are summarized; physical and biological limitations of this technology are also examined. Furthermore, typical inks used in the inkjet printing technology are introduced.

Expert opinion: Inkjet bioprinting technology is a promising tool for many biological and pharmaceutical applications. Several bottlenecks associated with this technology need to be addressed before commercialization. For example, sophisticated inks need to be synthesized to meet both biological and engineering restrictions. Further progress of parallel technologies will enhance the performance and functionality of the printers. It is also worth emphasizing that inkjet printing technologies must meet the requirement of regulatory agencies (e.g. the US Food & Drug Administration) for commercialization by the pharmaceutical industry.

KEYWORDS:

• Inkjet dispensing technology
• inkjet printer
• drug discovery
• drug screening
• ink

Article highlights

• Inkjet printers open many opportunities in the fields of drug discovery, drug delivery, and tissue engineering.

• Inkjet printing technology is one of the common forms of bioprinting due to its high throughput, precision, and low cost.

• Several inkjet printing parameters need to be satisfied to obtain optimized results for drug discovery and other pharmaceutical applications.

• Each type of inkjet printer has unique characteristics and functionalities that need to be customized for various drugs, cells, and applications.

• There are many biological and physical constraints for inks used in inkjet printing technologies.

• Recent studies seek to develop inkjet printing technology for additional drug discovery applications.

This box summarizes key points contained in the article.

Declaration of interest

The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

Reviewer Disclosures

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Additional information

Funding

R Narayan is the recipient of fellowship funding from the NCSU Community Engaged Faculty Fellow program, the Visiting Advanced Joint Research (VAJRA) Faculty Award at the Indian Institute of Technology-BHU, the UNC Rajkumar Faculty Fellowship and the Burroughs Welcome Fund Travel Grant with the Technical University of Vienna. They have also received grant funding from: The National Science Foundation, the National Institute of Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals, the National Institutes of Health, the NCSU Adelaide Grant Program. He has also the recipient of a NC Space Grant. S Movahed has further received grant funding via the National Science Foundation.