Challenges and opportunities in generating microvasculature using bioprinting techniques.

Successful tissue transplantation requires the formation of microvasculature within engineered tissues. However, the formation of perfusable microvascular networks and their integration with host tissues after transplantation remain major challenges. We overview current bioprinting approaches for engineering microvascular structures and discuss their advantages and limitations. We further highlight applications of the Kenzan method developed in our laboratory for scaffold-free microvascular tissue fabrication and discuss future perspectives for vascularized tissue engineering.