Sequential assembly of cell-laden hydrogel constructs to engineer vascular-like microchannels.

ABSTRACT: Microscale technologies, such as microfluidic systems, provide powerful tools for building biomimetic vascular-like structures for tissue engineering or in vitro tissue models. Recently, modular approaches have emerged as attractive approaches in tissue engineering to achieve precisely controlled architectures by using microengineered components. Here, we sequentially assembled microengineered hydrogels (microgels) into hydrogel constructs with an embedded network of microchannels. Arrays of microgels with predefined internal microchannels were fabricated by photolithography and assembled into 3D tubular construct with multi-level interconnected lumens. In the current setting, the sequential assembly of microgels occurred in a biphasic reactor and was initiated by swiping a needle to gener

SUBMITTER: Du Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3098307 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature