Abstract

Direct Tissue Engineering Approaches for Regenerative Biology and Medicine

Suwan Jayasinghe, Group Leader, University College London

The ability to manipulate and distribute living mammalian cells with control presents fascinating possibilities for a plethora of applications in our healthcare. These imply several possibilities in tissue engineering and regenerative biology/medicine, to those of a therapeutic nature. The physical sciences are increasingly playing a pivotal role in this endeavour by both advancing existing cell engineering technology and pioneering new protocols for the creation of biologically viable structures. The talk will briefly introduce leading technologies  1, which have been fully validated from a physical, chemical and biological stand point for completely demonstrating their inertness for directly handling the most intricate advanced material known to humankind. Hence, each protocol's advantages and disadvantages will be clearly identified, whilst recognizing their future biological and engineering challenges. Although several technologies will be discussed the talk will focus of bio-electrosprays  2 and cell electrospinning3 which have truly pushed back the frontiers of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, previously hither to unachieved by any of its competing technologies in the toolbox. In conclusion, a few selected biotechnological applications will be presented where these protocols could undergo focused exploration. Successful development of these bio-protocols sees the emergence of unique future platform strategies within both a laboratory and a clinical environment having far-reaching consequences for our healthcare. 1. D. Poncelet, P. de Vos, N. Suter and S.N. Jayasinghe, Bio-electrospraying and cell electrospinning: progress and platform opportunities for basic biology and the clinical sciences, Advanced Healthcare Materials, 1(2012)27-34. 2. S.N. Jayasinghe, A.N. Qureshi and P.A.M. Eagles, Electrohydrodynamic jet processing: An advanced electric-field-driven jetting phenomenon for processing living cells, Small, 2(2006)216-219. 3. A. Tow