Projektbeschreibung
Neuartige biotechnologische Gefäßbildung für „Plug & Play“-Transplantate
Die Kapillarbetten sind ein fundamentaler Bestandteil des Durchblutungssystems, das Sauerstoff und Nährstoffe in Zellen und Gewebe transportiert und schädliche Abfallstoffe entfernt. Ohne sie würde das Blut wie ein Frachtzug um den Körper zirkulieren, der niemals an Bahnhöfen halt macht, um Güter auf- und abzuladen. Es wurden große Fortschritte bei der „Herstellung“ von Gewebe und Organen für Transplantate gemacht. Die Einführung der wichtigen Gefäßbildung in einer Weise, die es ermöglicht, dass Gewebe und Organe nach der Transplantation lebensfähig sind, ist jedoch nach wie vor eine Herausforderung. Das EU-finanzierte Projekt CapBed entwickelt biotechnologische Kapillarbetten, welche die Gefäßbildung bei laborgezüchteten Organen induzieren können, um nach der Transplantation mit der Blutversorgung von Patientinnen und Patienten verbunden zu werden, damit ein gesunder Start der neuen Organe sichergestellt ist.
Ziel
The demand for donated organs vastly outnumbers the supply, leading each year to the death of thousands of people and the suffering of millions more. Engineered tissues and organs following Tissue Engineering approaches are a possible solution to this problem. However, a prevascularization solution to irrigate complex engineered tissues and assure their survival after transplantation is currently elusive. In the human body, complex organs and tissues irrigation is achieved by a network of blood vessels termed capillary bed which suggests such a structure is needed in engineered tissues. Previous approaches to engineer capillary beds reached different levels of success but none yielded a fully functional one due to the inability in simultaneously addressing key elements such as correct angiogenic cell populations, a suitable matrix and dynamic conditions that mimic blood flow.
CapBed aims at proposing a new technology to fabricate in vitro capillary beds that include a vascular axis that can be anastomosed with a patient circulation. Such capillary beds could be used as prime tools to prevascularize in vitro engineered tissues and provide fast perfusion of those after transplantation to a patient. Cutting edge techniques will be for the first time integrated in a disruptive approach to address the requirements listed above. Angiogenic cell sheets of human Adipose-derived Stromal Vascular fraction cells will provide the cell populations that integrate the capillaries and manage its intricate formation, as well as the collagen required to build the matrix that will hold the capillary beds. Innovative fabrication technologies such as 3D printing and laser photoablation will be used for the fabrication of the micropatterned matrix that will allow fluid flow through microfluidics. The resulting functional capillary beds can be used with virtually every tissue engineering strategy rendering the proposed strategy with massive economical, scientific and medical potential
Wissenschaftliches Gebiet
- natural sciencesphysical sciencesclassical mechanicsfluid mechanicsmicrofluidics
- engineering and technologycivil engineeringwater engineeringirrigation
- medical and health sciencesmedical biotechnologytissue engineering
- engineering and technologymechanical engineeringmanufacturing engineeringadditive manufacturing
- medical and health sciencesclinical medicinetransplantation
Schlüsselbegriffe
Programm/Programme
Thema/Themen
Finanzierungsplan
ERC-STG - Starting GrantGastgebende Einrichtung
4704 553 Braga
Portugal