THIS GRANT IS A CONTINUATION OF N00014-12-1-0983 Tissue Actuators for Biorobotics and Biosensing Applications

Abstract

Short Work Statement: The proposed effort addresses the fabrication of functional, vascularized cardiac tissue for biorobotic and biosensing applications using a cell-laden hydrogel approach with engineered microvasculature. Specifically, hydrogel encapsulated primitive rat embryonic stem cells will be simultaneously differentiated into cardiac and endothelial lineages using the microenvironmental cues Wnt11 (a cardiognesis signaling molecule) and Wnt5a (an endothelial differentiation signaling molecule) that are spatially patterned. Cell-laden hydrogels offer several advantages over cell seeded scaffolds for tissue engineering including accommodating cells in 3-dimensional architectures, supplying a fully hydrated environment similar to the native environment, enabling co-culture of more than one cell type with control over their spatial organization, enabling higher yields of cell densities, and providing more uniform cell distribution. Current approaches to tissue engineering are not adequate for fabricating functional tissues with a defined architecture that comprise more than one cell type starting with embryonic stem cells. Thus, if successful, this effort will add novel tools for the fabrication of next generation biomimetic tissue structures.

Document Details

Document Type
DoD Grant Award
Publication Date
Jun 03, 2016
Source ID
N000141612207

Entities

People

  • Ali Khademhosseini

Organizations

  • Office of Naval Research
  • United States Navy

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Biology

Readers

  • Nanocomposite Materials Science
  • Oncology (Cancer Research).
  • Robotics and Automation.

Technology Areas

  • Biotechnology