A Blood Vessel Model Constructed from Collagen and Cultured Vascular Cells

Weinberg, Crispin B.; Bell, Eugene

doi:10.1126/science.2934816

Cited by 1,118 publications

(673 citation statements)

References 21 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

663

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…One such material, PureCol ™ (Vitrogen ® ), consisting of 99.9% pure type I collagen, is widely used in cell culture and tissue engineering, and as a coating material for medical devices [9][10][11][12][13]. A more complete suite of matricellular proteins and growth factors is provided by Matrigel ™ , an ECM preparation extracted from Engelbreth-Holm-Swarm (EHS) mouse sarcoma [14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of extracellular matrix analogues on primary human fibroblast behavior

2008

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In vitro cell culture is a vital research tool for cell biology, pharmacology, toxicology, protein production, systems biology and drug discovery. Traditional culturing methods on plastic surfaces do not accurately represent the in vivo environment, and a paradigm shift from two-dimensional to three-dimensional (3-D) experimental techniques is underway. To enable this change, a variety of natural, synthetic and semi-synthetic extracellular matrix (ECM) equivalents have been developed to provide an appropriate cellular microenvironment. We describe herein an investigation of the properties of four commercially available ECM equivalents on the growth and proliferation of primary human tracheal scar fibroblast behavior, both in 3-D and pseudo-3-D conditions. We also compare subcutaneous tissue growth of 3-D encapsulated fibroblasts in vivo in two of these materials, Matrigel ™ and Extracel ™ . The latter shows increased cell proliferation and remodeling of the ECM equivalent. The results provide researchers with a rational basis for selection of a given ECM equivalent based on its biological performance in vitro and in vivo, as well as the practicality of the experimental protocols. Biomaterials that use a customizable glycosaminoglycan-based hydrogel appear to offer the most convenient and flexible system for conducting in vitro research that accurately translates to in vivo physiology needed for tissue engineering.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of extracellular matrix analogues on primary human fibroblast behavior

2008

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…For instance, the ability to generate multilayered gels that contain living cells may enable the engineering of spatially complex biological tissues. 10 Likewise, the ability to control the 3D arrangement of cells in gels would provide new tools for biological research. 11 Thus, we have developed methods to fabricate 3D composites from gels ( Figure 2).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Molding of Three-Dimensional Microstructures of Gels

2003

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This Communication describes the use of patterned elastomeric stamps to fabricate three-dimensional (3D) microstructures of hydrogels. Hydrogels are indispensable for many chemical and biological applications, including electrophoretic separation, chromatography, drug delivery, biosensing, and tissue engineering. 1 The ability to pattern the topologies of gels at the microscale is desirable in these applications, because microscale structures are often more sensitive and versatile than their macroscale counterparts are. To date, patterning of gels at the microscale has relied primarily on photopolymerization of liquid precursors; 2,3 this strategy cannot be used with many types of gels, such as those made of proteins or sugars. Here, we introduce a general strategy for microfabrication of gels: the use of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) stamps to mold, release, and stack gels into 3D structures, and the use of surface modification to promote the release or adhesion of molded gels to a substrate.Our work builds upon the studies of Whitesides and others in soft lithography, which use patterned PDMS stamps to generate microscale structures in photoresist, polymers, and metals. 4,5 We first identified surface treatments for PDMS that allowed release of a molded gel from a stamp, because gels that were molded against untreated PDMS often adhered to the stamps and deformed irreversibly upon separation from them. Of the surface treatments that we tested, only modification of PDMS stamps by hexa(ethylene glycol)-terminated self-assembled monolayers (SAMs), or by adsorbed monolayers of bovine serum albumin (BSA), allowed distortion-free separation of stamps from gels molded against them. 6 These treatments greatly reduce nonspecific adsorption of protein; 7 we suspect that their ability to promote release of gels results from a decrease in adsorption of soluble gel precursors onto treated stamps.Modification of PDMS stamps with these treatments allowed the application of standard soft lithographic techniques, 8 such as replica molding, microtransfer molding (µTM), and micromolding in capillaries (MIMIC), to the microfabrication of gels. 9 Figure 1 shows images of microstructures molded in collagen, using modified PDMS stamps; we obtained similar results when molding other protein-based gels, such as gelatin and the tumor extract Matrigel, as well as sugar-based gels such as agarose. Replica molding, µTM, or MIMIC of liquid precursors generated monolithic gels (with surface relief), isolated microstructures, or interconnected networks, respectively, with a spatial resolution of e5 µm ( Figure 1A, inset). Microtransfer molding against substrates that promoted or resisted the adhesion of gels generated supported arrays of collagen gels and a suspension of free-standing gels, respectively ( Figure 1B). These gels were dimensionally stable for several days in saline at 4°C.Many potential applications of microstructured gels require the development of structures that are more complex than the uniform gels shown in Figure 1. For ...

show abstract

“…The early model of engineering blood vessel consisted of a multi-layered structure including animal collagen and cultured bovine endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells and fibroblasts [2]. However, these blood vessel is too weak to withstand pressure.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Weinberg and Bell first reported an approach for generating tissue engineered blood vessel in 1986 [2].Since then many improved methods have been developed [3][4][5]. The effort to construct living blood vessels has recently been performed in our laboratory [6], using smooth muscle cells (SMCs) and endothelial cells (ECs) harvested from animal arteries and veins as seed cells.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tissue engineering of blood vessels with endothelial cells differentiated from mouse embryonic stem cells

Shen

Tsung

et al. 2003

Cell Res

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Endothelial cells (TEC 3 cells) derived from mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells were used as seed cells to construct blood vessels. Tissue engineered blood vessels were made by seeding 8 10 6 smooth muscle cells (SMCs) obtained from rabbit arteries onto a sheet of nonwoven polyglycolic acid (PGA) fibers, which was used as a biodegradable polymer scaffold. After being cultured in DMEM medium for 7 days in vitro, SMCs grew well on the PGA fibers, and the cell-PGA sheet was then wrapped around a silicon tube, and implanted subcutaneously into nude mice. After 6~8 weeks, the silicon tube was replaced with another silicon tube in smaller diameter, and then the TEC 3 cells (endothelial cells differentiated from mouse ES cells) were injected inside the engineered vessel tube as the test group. In the control group only culture medium was injected. Five days later, the engineered vessels were harvested for gross observation, histological and immunohistochemical analysis. The preliminary results demonstrated that the SMC-PGA construct could form a tubular structure in 6~8 weeks and PGA fibers were completely degraded. Histological and immunohistochemical analysis of the newly formed tissue revealed a typical blood vessel structure, including a lining of endothelial cells (ECs) on the lumimal surface and the presence of SMC and collagen in the wall. No EC lining was found in the tubes of control group. Therefore, the ECs differentiated from mouse ES cells can serve as seed cells for endothelium lining in tissue engineered blood vessels.

show abstract

A Blood Vessel Model Constructed from Collagen and Cultured Vascular Cells

Cited by 1,118 publications

References 21 publications

Effects of extracellular matrix analogues on primary human fibroblast behavior

Effects of extracellular matrix analogues on primary human fibroblast behavior

Molding of Three-Dimensional Microstructures of Gels

Tissue engineering of blood vessels with endothelial cells differentiated from mouse embryonic stem cells

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About