# Biofabrication Training Program

> **NIH NIH T32** · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO · 2024 · $111,384

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Biofabrication is an emerging field that uses the controlled three-dimensional (3D) processing of materials to
produce structures (e.g., scaffolds, microparticles, microfluidic platforms) for use in biomedicine. Technologies
such as 3D printing, electrospinning, and photopatterning guide material structures to alter cellular behaviors,
with impact on the fields of tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, drug delivery, 3D cell culture, and in vitro
tissue models, across various tissue and disease systems. In order to capitalize on these advances and to train
a future workforce in biofabrication for academia, start-up companies, and mainstream industries, organized
educational programs are needed. We propose unique training that connects education in the fundamentals of
biofabrication techniques and quantitative methods to clinical applications and product-oriented design to
address major challenges in medicine. Our University of Colorado Boulder Biofabrication (CU BioFab) Trainees
will experience rigorous training in biofabrication via a newly developed lecture and hands-on course, industrial
engagement through coursework product design or participation in an industrial internship, co-mentoring by
clinical faculty to provide appropriate context to their PhD projects, an annual retreat to provide opportunities to
present their work across all stages of the program, and a bi-weekly seminar course that will harness webinars,
interactions with international biofabrication experts, soft skills development, and engagement with
entrepreneurship programs. We expect to develop a distinct trainee phenotype that exhibits: (a) decision-making
capabilities that balance innovative thinking with practical considerations (clinical applications, entrepreneurship)
and (b) leadership skills to make a meaningful impact on society. CU BioFab Trainees will become engineers
familiar with biofabrication techniques that are uncommon in traditional or even mainstream biomaterials and
bioengineering education, as well as industry and entrepreneurship interactions that are often missing in training
programs. CU Boulder is the place for such a training program, due to our extensive expertise across relevant
topics through our knowledgeable Preceptors, which include faculty in the Departments of Chemical and
Biological Engineering and Mechanical Engineering, as well as interdisciplinary graduate programs in Materials
Science & Engineering and Biomedical Engineering. Additionally, the infrastructure on campus, as well as the
extensive and growing biotechnology industry within the Rocky Mountain region, will guide the success of this
new training program.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10849182
- **Project number:** 1T32EB034215-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO
- **Principal Investigator:** Stephanie J Bryant
- **Activity code:** T32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $111,384
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-06-01 → 2029-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10849182

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10849182, Biofabrication Training Program (1T32EB034215-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10849182. Licensed CC0.

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