Browsing by Subject "tissue engineering"
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Item Fabrication of Aligned Nanofibers Along Z-Axis – A Novel 3D Electrospinning Technique(University of Texas at Austin, 2018) Tan, George Z.; Zhou, YinggeThis study presents a 3D fabrication technique of nanofibrous scaffold for tissue engineering. A divergence static electric field was introduced in an electrospinning system to induce a self-assembly of aligned nanofibers into a tunable 3D architecture with thickness ranging from 2-12 mm. The effects of collector configuration on polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofiber attributes were investigated. Human fibroblast cells were cultured on the nanofiber scaffold in vitro for 7 days. It was found that the width and inclination angle of the collector influenced the nanofiber density distribution. The cells proliferated on the scaffold and organized as a fibrous matrix which mimicked the microstructure of native musculoskeletal tissues.Item The Use of Poly(vinyl alcohol)-based Hydrogels in Biomedical Applications(2018) Subramanian, Deepak; Peppas, NicholasPolymers have found increasing favor in biomedical applications due to the greater control that researchers can exert over their properties. Researchers have focused on the development of therapies using biologically compatible polymers due to their ability to limit potentially harmful interactions with the body. This research has led to advances in tissue engineering, controlled and targeted drug delivery, and other biomedical fields, with the goal of improving both the effectiveness and accessibility of health care. Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) hydrogels possess several chemical properties that make them well suited for biomedical applications. These include inertness and stability, biocompatibility, and pH-responsiveness. As a result, PVA based materials have been studied for potential applications in areas of biomedicine such as targeted drug delivery, tissue engineering, and wound healing. This thesis examines the properties of PVA and seeks to understand how the chemical and physical structure affects their properties. It then examines how these properties enhance their utility in potential biomedical applications. Finally, it reviews the research into development of PVA based materials for three different biomedical applications.Item Vertical and Horizontal Fabrication of Alginate-Based Vascular-Like Constructs Using Inkjetting(University of Texas at Austin, 2012) Xu, Changxue; Huang, Yong; Markwald, Roger R.Organ printing, among different tissue engineering innovations, is a layer-by-layer additive fabrication approach for making three-dimensional (3D) tissue and organ constructs using cellular spheroids or bioink as building blocks. The capability to fabricate 3D cellular tubes is the first step as well as an important indicator of the overall feasibility of envisioned organ printing technology. In this study, vascular-like alginate tubes with a hemi-branching point, which mimic typical vascular constructs, are fabricated both vertically and horizontally using drop-on-demand inkjetting. In addition, manufacturing challenges associated with the vertical and horizontal printing configurations are briefly discussed. This study lays a foundation for the effective and efficient fabrication of viable 3D vascular constructs with complex anatomies (e.g. branching) as required in organ printing of vascular trees.