North Carolina State University grad student Stephanie Stewart takes 3D printed plants to center stage
Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
July 24, 2026
As featured sustainability speaker for TEDxNCState, Stephanie Stewart discussed the promise of 3D bioprinting for plants with improved agricultural traits. Photo by Danielle Woods.
Scientists have managed to 3D print human skin, blood vessels, ears, even a cornea from living cells. But we still can’t 3D print, say, a cornstalk or a carrot.
The process is similar to traditional 3D printing, but instead of using plastic or resin, “we use living cells,” Stewart told a sold-out crowd gathered in NC State’s Thompson Hall, where she was the featured sustainability presenter at TEDxNCState this spring.
By controlling cell density, layering and spacing, we replicate the natural cues which tell cells what to become.
“We take these cells and add them to a mixture of supporting enzymes and scaffolding materials to get bioink,” Stewart explained. “We then take our bioink, load it into the printer, and, layer by layer, we are 3D printing living tissue.”
Stewart showed a slide of some 3D printed soybean cells growing in the Sozzani lab.
A week after being printed, the tiny green clusters don’t look like much. But scientists say 3D bioprinting can replicate the natural 3D arrangement of cells in plant tissues in ways that traditional tissue culture techniques can’t.
“By controlling cell density, layering and spacing, we replicate the natural cues which tell cells what to become,” Stewart said.
A Promising Tool for Plant Improvement
Once the cells are printed, the aim is to coax them to form new roots and shoots, and one day even entire plants with improved agricultural traits.
The age of crops printed on demand is still years away. But eventually, 3D bioprinting could help researchers engineer plant cells to produce certain compounds for better biofuels, for example, or quickly screen plant varieties for tolerance to heat, drought and other stresses.
For now, researchers are still honing the methods to keep bioprinted plant cells alive long enough to grow, divide and do other things that cells do. Stewart says this is where her skills come in.
And a Promising Next-Gen Biomathematician
After the TEDxNCState talk, Stephanie Stewart went on to win first place for her presentation on 3D bioprinting at this year’s Plant and Microbial Biology Graduate Student Symposium.
After graduating from East Carolina University at the top of her class in 2024 with a degree in mathematics, Stewart decided to pursue a doctorate in NC State’s biomathematics program.
In the Sozzani lab in NC State’s Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, she’s using machine learning methods to analyze large numbers of microscopy images and measure changes in printed cells over time.
Sozanni has appreciated Stewart’s mathematical rigor and the fresh perspectives she’s brought to the lab.
“Her ability to apply advanced quantitative methods to complex biological questions demonstrates how interdisciplinary scientists can accelerate discoveries that are critical for the future of agriculture and biotechnology,” Sozanni said.
For her part, Stewart enjoys getting “to take the best parts of science, technology and math and blend it all together.”
‘Dealing With Sustainability Every Day’
Stewart remembers the moment she found out she was selected for TEDxNCState.
“I was proctoring a calculus exam when I got a call saying, ‘We love your idea; we want you to give a TED talk. Can you be ready in two weeks?’
“They wanted research ideas, they wanted innovation, and they wanted it to be focused on sustainability,” Stewart said. “When you work for the Plant Sciences Initiative, you’re dealing with sustainability every day.”
“That morning, I was so nervous; I walked on stage trembling,” she added.
“But then towards the end, I couldn’t stop smiling because I knew I was nailing it.”
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As featured sustainability speaker for TEDxNCState, Stephanie Stewart discussed the promise of 3D bioprinting for plants with improved agricultural traits. Photo by Danielle Woods.
After the TEDxNCState talk, Stephanie Stewart went on to win first place for her presentation on 3D bioprinting at this year’s Plant and Microbial Biology Graduate Student Symposium.
