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3D Bioprinting in Plant Science: An Interdisciplinary Approach

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Here we highlight advances and opportunities for using 3D bioprinting in plant biology research that could lead to low-cost solutions for biomedical and other applications. For example, the development of plant cell-based and plant-inspired 3D-printed constructs could provide information about single-cell, tissue, and whole-plant interactions with the surrounding environment.

Section snippets

Subcellular and Cellular Dynamics

Cellular components, like mitochondria and the cell wall (CW), are dynamic entities that can undergo changes during various phases of plant development. Understanding these dynamics is important in determining the morphophysiological response of cells to different growth conditions. Advanced microscopic imaging has been the main tool to study subcellular and molecular dynamics at high spatiotemporal resolution in living cells. Nevertheless, some of the subcellular responses to the different

Soil Penetration by Plant Roots

Plant roots are highly competent for soil penetration as well as uptake of water and nutrients. Thus, a holistic understanding of plant roots could contribute to agricultural and environmental issues, such as enhanced plant yield and the ecology and sustainability of soil resources. Current setups to study plant root elongation, soil penetration, and the development of belowground root clusters takes into account physiological factors of plants and external stimuli. However, the root

Concluding Remarks

Bioprinting has great potential in plant science research. The interpretation of cellular behavior, physiology, and molecular dynamics in a simulated 3D environment may provide principal information that has not been accessible to plant biologists to date. Figure 1 gives nature-inspired examples for plant cell-based and plant-inspired constructs that provide low-cost solutions for biomedical and/or other scientific applications to study plant–environment interactions. However, there is further

Acknowledgments

The financial support rendered by the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), New Delhi (Research Scientist Scheme) for S.K. and a Start-up grant from the University Grant Commission (UGC), New Delhi and Central University of Jammu for V.S. is gratefully acknowledged. The financial support of the Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme (TEQIP; Phase-III), Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India for Biotechnology Programme at the Institute of

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