European researchers have achieved a milestone in regenerative medicine with an integrated platform that combines advanced biomaterials, modelling, and 3D bioprinting to create personalized scaffolds for complex tissue repair. These scaffolds are designed to support the body’s own repair processes in unprecedented ways, paving the way for future therapies beyond current solutions. 

Aveiro, Portugal, October 2025 – Bones give strength, cartilage provides cushioning, and ligaments hold everything together. Where these tissues intersect, they form integrated, interconnected systems that keep us moving – and it is here that medicine still faces one of its toughest challenges: repairing damage in such complex zones. Now, researchers across Europe have developed an integrated platform for multi-tissue regeneration that combines human blood–based biomaterials, computational modelling, and a novel Print-and-Cure bioprinting system. At its core, the platform makes it possible to create innovative scaffolds - tailor-made structures designed to support the repair of both hard and soft tissues within a single construct. Tested in experimental settings, these scaffolds have shown encouraging outcomes and lay the groundwork for future therapies that could one day offer alternatives to prosthetic solutions.

Figure: Conceptual illustration of the innovative Interlynk scaffold, combining different biomaterials in one single scaffold to respond to the diverse regenerative needs of tissues in complex transitional zones

Meeting an Unmet Need 

Millions of people worldwide suffer from trauma injuries, degenerative diseases, or age-related conditions that damage musculoskeletal tissues. These tissues form intricate systems of hard, soft and fibrous components that are essential for movement and daily functions such as speaking, walking or chewing. Once damaged, their natural capacity to self-repair is extremely limited. Reconstructing them is particularly challenging because each type of tissue has very different biological and mechanical properties, and the transitional zones where they meet are equally complex.  

To address this pressing medical challenge, European scientists united in the EU-funded InterLynk project have reached a milestone in regenerative medicine, developing approaches that aim to restore tissue interfaces rather than separate parts. Among the possible applications explored was the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), a particularly complex structure where current treatments often rely on prostheses that do not fully replicate the intricacy of native tissues. Building on the foundations laid by InterLynk, the research effort is continuing toward future clinical applications.  

Key Achievements 

Over four years, InterLynk partners developed an integrated platform - a complete workflow for scaffold design and production that brings together innovations in biomaterials, computational modelling, and additive manufacturing. At its core are new biomaterials based on human-derived platelet lysates, which are naturally rich in growth factors and stimulate healing. These were engineered into hydrogels – soft, water-rich gel-like materials that mimic aspects of the body’s own tissues – and into inks combining calcium phosphate with platelet lysates to support bone regeneration. The novelty of these biomaterials has been recognized with a patent, underlining their potential impact. Together, they provide the building blocks for scaffolds that can combine multiple functions in a single construct.  

The project also advanced fabrication technologies with the development of a novel Print and Cure printhead combined with an integrated electrospinning module within a single 3D printing system. This setup merges extrusion with immediate light-based curing, allowing the material to solidify as it is deposited and ensuring each layer is stabilized in real time. The addition of electrospinning makes it possible to deposit ultrafine fibres onto the printed structure, mimicking the fibrous texture of natural tissues and improving the scaffold’s performance. Alongside these advances, computational modelling tools were developed to optimize scaffold design and predict how materials behave during printing, reducing trial and error and making scaffold production more efficient. 

Central to the project was the convergence of disciplines - biology, chemistry, medicine, and engineering - brought together in a shared effort to move regenerative medicine forward. To ensure that the outcomes were not only scientifically innovative but also clinically meaningful, InterLynk engaged in close co-creation with surgeons and nearly 200 patients. Their insights shaped the design and selection of materials, ensuring that the solutions developed were aligned with clinical practice and patient needs. As one clinician noted: “There is currently no regenerative solution that combines hard and soft tissues — this work shows the potential to fill that gap.”  

The project further expanded its impact through education, creating accessible resources such as a videogame where players guide a droplet of platelet lysate on a mission to repair tissues. These tools are designed to spark curiosity among younger generations and the wider public and are freely available on the InterLynk website.  

Impact and Outlook

InterLynk proves the feasibility of designing a single scaffold tailored to the complex requirements of multiple tissues, opening the way to more integrated and functional repair strategies for complex defects. By uniting expertise from different scientific and technological fields and grounding the work in patient and clinician feedback, the project has laid the foundations for clinically relevant solutions that could make a real difference in healthcare. 

For conditions such as severe TMJ damage, where treatment options are still limited, the technology developed in InterLynk points toward future approaches that could provide patients with fewer complications, more reliable outcomes, and improved quality of life compared to current solutions. While further testing and validation will be needed before such solutions can reach the clinic, the implications extend well beyond jaw repair:  the biomaterials and fabrication strategies explored in the project could be adapted for a wide range of musculoskeletal defects, offering new possibilities for personalized medicine. “Our work has laid important groundwork for regenerative strategies that could one day improve patients’ lives in ways current treatments cannot,” concludes Prof. João F. Mano, InterLynk Project Coordinator from the Universidade de Aveiro. 

About InterLynk 

InterLynk ran from January 2021 to July 2025. The project brought together eight partners from four countries - Portugal, Germany, the Netherlands, and Italy - including three universities, one research and technology organization, and four SMEs. Coordinated by the University of Aveiro under the leadership of Prof. João F. Mano, InterLynk was funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 programme (Grant Agreement No. 953169) with a budget of nearly € 6 million.