Designer Scaffolds for Interfacial Bioengineering

Abstract

In regenerative medicine, the healing of the interfacial zone between tissues is a major challenge, yet approaches for studying the complex microenvironment of this interface remain lacking. Herein, these complex living interfaces by manufacturing modular “blocks” of naturally porous decellularized plant‐derived scaffolds with a computer numerical controlled mill are studied. How each scaffold can be seeded with different cell types and easily assembled in a manner akin to LEGO bricks to create an engineered tissue interface (ETI) is demonstrated. Cells migrate across the interface formed between an empty scaffold and a scaffold preseeded with cells. However, when both scaffolds contain cells, only a shallow cross‐over zone of cell infiltration forms at the interface. As a proof‐of‐concept study, ETIs to investigate the interaction between lab grown bone and connective tissues are used. Consistent with the above, a cross‐over zone of the two distinct cell types forms at the interface between scaffolds, otherwise the populations remain distinct. Finally, how ETIs are biocompatible in vivo are demonstrated, becoming vascularized and integrated into surrounding tissue after implantation. Herein, new tissue design avenues for understanding biological processes or the development of synthetic artificial tissues are created.

Plant Cellulose as a Substrate for 3D Neural Stem Cell Culture

“…Asparagus scaffolds were prepared utilizing decellularization methods described previously 51,52 . Using a 4 mm biopsy punch, Asparagus officinalis sections were cut and placed into a 50ml Falcon tube containing 0.1% sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) (Sigma-Aldrich).…”

Plant Cellulose as a Substrate for 3D Neural Stem Cell Culture

“…Asparagus scaffolds were prepared utilizing decellularization methods described previously [39,51]. Using a 4 mm biopsy punch, Asparagus officinalis sections were cut and placed into a 50 mL Falcon tube containing 0.1% sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) (Sigma-Aldrich, Markham, ON, Canada).…”

“…In the past decade, plant-derived scaffolds have been used successfully in numerous independent studies by many research groups worldwide [38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55]. The biocompatibility of plant scaffolds has been extensively studied both in vitro and in vivo.…”

“…The biocompatibility of plant scaffolds has been extensively studied both in vitro and in vivo. Many plant species and tissues such as apple [56], leek [41], parsley [43], spinach [46], green onion [47], Flammulina velutipes [54], tobacco BY-2 cells [55], Camellia japonica [53], and brown seaweed [57] have been studied with many cell lines including C2C12 myoblasts, human foreskin fibroblasts, HeLa cells [58], NIH 3T3 cells [51], human mesenchymal stem cells, and human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes [43]. For example, spinach leaves were decellularized while maintaining their vascular architecture, which was then repopulated with human dermal microvascular endothelial cells [49].…”