Methods of Monitoring Cell Fate and Tissue Growth in Three-Dimensional Scaffold-Based Strategies forIn VitroTissue Engineering

Abstract

In the field of tissue engineering, there is a need for methods that allow assessing the performance of tissue-engineered constructs noninvasively in vitro and in vivo. To date, histological analysis is the golden standard to retrieve information on tissue growth, cellular distribution, and cell fate on tissue-engineered constructs after in vitro cell culture or on explanted specimens after in vivo applications. Yet, many advances have been made to optimize imaging techniques for monitoring tissue-engineered constructs with a sub-mm or μm resolution. Many imaging modalities have first been developed for clinical applications, in which a high penetration depth has been often more important than lateral resolution. In this study, we have reviewed the current state of the art in several imaging approaches that have shown to be promising in monitoring cell fate and tissue growth upon in vitro culture. Depending on the aimed tissue type and scaffold properties, some imaging methods are more applicable than others. Optical methods are mostly suited for transparent materials such as hydrogels, whereas magnetic resonance-based methods are mostly applied to obtain contrast between hard and soft tissues regardless of their transparency. Overall, this review shows that the field of imaging in scaffold-based tissue engineering is developing at a fast pace and has the potential to overcome the limitations of destructive endpoint analysis.

3D Culture Histology Cryosectioned Well Insert Technology Preserves the Structural Relationship between Cells and Biomaterials for Time‐Lapse Analysis of 3D Cultures

“…Other in vivo imaging technologies such as ultrasound, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, optical coherence tomography, and light sheet microscopy are unfortunately not easily adaptable for cell culture plates. The better‐suited confocal and multiphoton microscopes provide sufficient data but they cannot be performed with histology.…”

“…Among biomaterials, the most adapted and common technologies used to follow the growth of an engineered tissue are confocal and multiphoton microscopes . With microscopy, cells in the biomaterials are visible by either a genetically transfected fluorescent protein or a chemical probe .…”

Hard Tissue Augmentation of Aged Bone by Means of a Tin-Free PLLA-PCL Co-Polymer Exhibiting in vivo Anergy and Long-Term Structural Stability

“…Material properties are highly selective upon development of biological interfaces [27-31]. In lieu of powerful predictive modeling, emergence of discriminative effects can yet not be predicted, thus the field greatly relies on empirical studies.…”

Spatial Analysis of Metal–PLGA Hybrid Microstructures Using 3D SERS Imaging

“…This is commonly done by using invasive methods such as histology, which do not allow continuous monitoring, while noninvasive methods such as fluorescence microscopy are often limited in penetration depth, sensitivity, and long-term stability, as well as by photobleaching. [34,35] We introduce here the synthesis of PLGA-metal nanoparticle hybrid materials using EHD co-jetting. AuNSs labeled with different SERS active molecules were embedded in separate compartments of different polymeric structures (particles and fibers), and 3D-SERS imaging was used to monitor the distribution of the particles inside the polymer.…”