Developing Anchoring Methods to Generate and Mature 3D-Engineered Tissues

Mentors

• 

  Christopher Chen

  Professor (BME, MSE)

• 

  Mustafa Cagatay Karakan

  Postdoctoral Research Associate

Project Description

The field of tissue engineering commonly employs post-like 3D mechanical boundaries as a useful way to give cues to the cells for compacting and remodeling the extracellular matrix. These boundaries and anchoring play a key role since they define the shape of the tissue and report forces tissues generate through their deformations. However, these tissues tend to fail over time due to a lack of adhesion of the tissues to the boundaries, extreme levels of intratissue tension, or high tissue contractility. The overall goal of the project is to develop a scalable anchoring method to generate durable freestanding 3Dengineered tissues, increasing the throughput and longevity.

Timeline

Week 1-2: Lab and lab safety training, software setup and training, literature review
Week 2-5: Working on the designs, learning 3D printing, PDMS microfabrication and cell culture basics
Week 6-8: Start testing tissue generation and monitoring tissue remodeling/failure over time, adjust modify the designs if needed
Week 9-10: Finalize experiments, data analysis/visualization, poster preparation/presentation