3D Body Mapping Helps Repair Cellular Damage

A new study reveals an innovative three-dimensional (3D) instrumented mapping technology that can monitor and track the behavior of engineered cells and tissues.

Developed by researchers at Purdue University (Lafayette, IN, USA) and Hanyang University (Seoul, Republic of Korea), the ultrabuoyant 3D scaffold remains afloat on the surface of a culture medium, providing a favorable environment for the electronic components, which remain in the air while the cells reside and grow underneath. This enables high-fidelity recording of electrical cell–substrate impedance and electrophysiological signals over long periods of time, even weeks. Currently, long-term reliable 3D monitoring is limited by the wet cell culture conditions, which are unfavorable to electronic instrument settings.

The new scaffold, on the other hand, can provide real-time monitoring of the cellular behaviors and functions, thus providing a profound impact on underlying biophysics and disease modeling. A battery of comprehensive in-vitro studies undertaken by the researchers revealed the utility of the platform as an effective tool for drug screening and tissue development following cancer treatments. They are now testing the potential of the device in stem cell therapies and the regenerative treatment of diseases. The study was published in the June 19, 2019, issue of ACS Nano.

“Tissue engineering already provides new hope for hard-to-treat disorders, and our technology brings even more possibilities. My hope is to help millions of people in need,” said senior author biomedical and mechanical engineer Chi Hwan Lee, PhD, of the Purdue College of Engineering. “This device offers an expanded set of potential options to monitor cell and tissue function after surgical transplants in diseased or damaged bodies.”

Tissue engineering, often called regenerative medicine, combines cell cultures, engineering and materials methods, and biochemical and physicochemical factors to improve or replace biological tissues. It involves the use of a tissue scaffold for the formation of new viable tissue for a medical purpose. While it was once categorized as a sub-field of biomaterials, having grown in scope and importance it can be considered as a field in its own.

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Purdue University
Hanyang University