Project description
Adaptive 3D bioprinting
3D bioprinting shapes living tissue with precision. However, structural form alone does not create function. Cells in the body naturally mature and adapt to their environment over time. Standard printers cannot monitor this growth. This limitation slows the development of functional human organs. The ERC-funded SMART-AGENT project aims to develop adaptive, light-based bioprinters that can ‘see’ the tissue they build, using advanced imaging, computer vision and AI. By combining biofabrication with optogenetics, the system will steer cell behaviour in real time through targeted light signals. The project will test the technology by creating vascularised models of the human endocrine pancreas, opening new paths to study diabetes and engineer functional tissue.
Objective
Three-dimensional bioprinting holds the promise to transform medicine and biology by assembling living matter into lab-made human tissues. Today’s bioprinting excels at producing anatomical shapes, to an extent unmatched by other technologies. However, in native tissues, biological function is intimately linked to architecture, but also tissue maturation and morphogenesis, processes that dynamically evolve as cells respond to environmental stimuli. Bioprinting has no way to follow maturation over time and intervene to guide cells, severely limiting the ability to fully mimic organ functions. Capturing and controlling tissue’s adaptive behaviour in bioprinted tissues can bring the long sought goal of engineering organ parts and its revolutionary potential within reach.
To achieve this goal, SMART-AGENT introduces a groundbreaking adaptive bioprinting technology able to directly instruct cells and guide tissue maturation with exquisite spatial and temporal precision. To make this possible, I will develop light-based printers that, leveraging advanced imaging, computer vision, and artificial intelligence, are able to “see” and “understand” the content and composition (cellular, chemical, architectural) of the printing environment. Elaborating this information, printers will automatically make decisions on how to generate printed parts and how to intervene directly on cell behaviour at any desired moment. Converging biofabrication and optogenetics, our adaptive bioprinting suite will trigger programmable cell response via light stimuli provided by the printer itself, effectively making cell functions 3D printable. Bringing together my unique expertise in photonics, bioprinting, cell engineering and synthetic biology, I will first assess the potential of this technology by developing vascularized human endocrine pancreas models with physiological-like function. This will open new avenues to study diabetes and to investigate human biology with unprecedented precision.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been human-validated.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been human-validated.
- natural sciences biological sciences synthetic biology
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine endocrinology diabetes
- engineering and technology mechanical engineering manufacturing engineering additive manufacturing
- engineering and technology industrial biotechnology biomaterials
- medical and health sciences medical biotechnology cells technologies
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
-
HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
See all projects funded under this programme
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
See all projects funded under this funding scheme
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2025-COG
See all projects funded under this callHost institution
Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
3584 CS Utrecht
Netherlands
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.