Membrane supported scaffold architectures for tissue engineering

Abstract

Prof. Dr. J. Vienken (Fresenius Medical Care, Germany) Dr. C. Legallais (Université de Technologie, France) Author -Narasimha Murthy Srivatsa BettahalliTitle -"Membrane supported scaffold architectures for tissue engineering"PhD Thesis, University of Twente, Enschede, The NetherlandsThe research described in this thesis was financially supported by STW (Utrecht, NL) (Project number -TKG.6716)Printed by: Gildeprint Drukkerijen, Enschede, The Netherlands Cover designed by NM Srivatsa BettahalliThe front cover shows dual flow glass bioreactor with 3D Free form fabricated scaffold integrated with hollow fibers (set-up artwork by Jonathan B Bennink of Tingle Visuals) and the back cover shows fluorescence microscope image of pre-labeled C2C12 cells cultured dynamically on multilayer cell-electrospun construct in dual flow perfusion bioreactor for 7 days (fluorescent image taken by Hemant Unadkat) and several SEM pictures at the top (PLLA hollow fiber, non-woven electrospun sheet and corrugated fiber) taken by the author. -3]. Along with the potential economic benefits from advanced tissue engineering technologies, reduced costs due to the availability of less expensive treatments for major medical problems is obvious, but indirect savings and dramatic improvements in treatment outcomes and quality of life for patients may prove to be even more important. There are several artificial tissues that are already being used for medical treatment (with limitations) which include fabricated skin, cartilage, blood vessels, bone, ligament and tendon [4][5][6]. It is also hoped that at least some of the whole organs like, liver, lung, kidney, pancreas, breast, intestine, etc. will become available off-the-shelf for treatment in the near future [7, 8]. MEMBRANE SUPPORTED SCAFFOLD ARCHITECTURES FOR TISSUE ENGINEERINGBesides the therapeutic application where the tissue is either grown in a patient (in-vivo) or outside the patient (in-vitro) and then transplanted to the patient, tissue engineering can have diagnostic applications where the tissue is made in-vitro and used for testing drug metabolism and uptake, toxicity, and pathogenicity [9][10][11][12]. The foundation of tissue engineering / regenerative medicine for either therapeutic or diagnostic applications is the ability to exploit living cells in a variety of ways.A tissue engineer first has to consider the function of the tissue -must it be strong? Elastic?Should it release certain proteins, like insulin from the pancreas, or filter toxins, like the kidneys? Then a 3D support must be designed that, when combined with cells, will eventually duplicate those functions, and continue to function properly in the body for years to come.Depending on the type of tissue, the design process can involve a variety of disciplines including mechanical / chemical engineering, molecular biology, physiology, medicine, polymer chemistry, and nanotechnology. Additionally, the scaffold can be constructed with or designed to release growth factors that can beneficially manipulate cell b...

Opening the “White Box” in Tissue Engineering: Visualization of Cell Aggregates in Optically Scattering Scaffolds

“…In literature they are described as a hepatocyte bioreactor and a medium perfusion system for three-dimensional tissue-engineered constructs. 12,13 These studies showed that the multibore hollow fiber was biocompatible. 12,13 The scaffolds were seeded with rat insulinoma cells or primary bovine chondrocytes, as a model for Islets of Langerhans, to investigate the performance of the imaging approach and optimize it for future in vivo applications.…”

“…12,13 These studies showed that the multibore hollow fiber was biocompatible. 12,13 The scaffolds were seeded with rat insulinoma cells or primary bovine chondrocytes, as a model for Islets of Langerhans, to investigate the performance of the imaging approach and optimize it for future in vivo applications. Near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths showed low scaffold signal background and deep penetration depths compared with visible wavelengths.…”