Zeb, Nazia (2025). Investigating the efficacy of a novel microfluidics-based bioprinting system to construct blood vessel mimics for tissue engineering. University of Birmingham. M.Sc.
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Zeb2025MScByRes.pdf
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Abstract
The shortage of bone tissue donors despite the rising cases of bone fracture incidences, as well as complications with current transplant methods, has spurred intense research into tissue engineering as a promising alternative. However, existing tissue engineering strategies face critical limitations, especially in supplying physiologically relevant levels of oxygen and nutrients to cells within the bone tissue scaffolds. To address this issue, a novel microfluidics-based chip for 3D-printing vascular structures was developed. The purpose of this research project was to investigate the efficacy of this novel microfluidic-based chip for fabricating hollow cell-compatible fibres, which are structurally adjustable, durable and can be perfused to mimic physiological blood flow for tissue engineering purposes.
The range of hollow core-shell fibres that can be generated with a defined width and geometry by changing the extrusion flow rates of core solutions, between 125-2000 μl.min–1, was demonstrated. Straight, wavy and helical core shapes were generated that have the potential to be used for recapitulating different flow rates found physiologically.
To optimise the printing conditions and materials for cell biocompatibility - cytotoxicity, cell adhesion and cell morphology were assessed. This revealed that 10 wt% (100 mg/ml) calcium chloride bath solution provides optimal cell viability as well as structural integrity of the 2 wt% (20 mg/ml) alginate fibres. Gelatine blended with alginate at 1:1 concentration supported cell adhesion while ensuring core-shell fibres could be formed. However, with the optimisation of printing conditions, such as temperature regulation, gelatine with higher concentrations can be used for enhancing cell adhesion.
Furthermore, the impact of the extrusion method, material composition and prolonged culture on viability of cells encapsulated in fibres with different structures, alongside the influence of storage and incubation conditions on fibre degradation and morphology was evaluated. The results demonstrated that fibres degrade over time when cultured in cell culture media for 28 days at 37 °C. This suggested the optimisation of shell material to improve the mechanical stability of fibres in culture is needed for future studies.
Finally, the hollow core-shell fibres were perfused using gravity and cannulation to confirm the structural integrity and uniformity of the fibre’s core for replicating blood flow. The cannulation method and loading of fibres in channels to create a set-up that can potentially be used for generating vascularised bone tissue were explored.
From this project, it can be concluded that, although the materials used for fabricating the fibre need optimisation, the novel microfluidic chip has shown great potential to create a variety of core-shell fibres to mimic human blood vessels for vascularised bone tissue engineering.
| Type of Work: | Thesis (Masters by Research > M.Sc.) | |||||||||||||||
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| Award Type: | Masters by Research > M.Sc. | |||||||||||||||
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| Licence: | All rights reserved | |||||||||||||||
| College/Faculty: | Colleges (2008 onwards) > College of Medical & Dental Sciences | |||||||||||||||
| School or Department: | School of Dentistry | |||||||||||||||
| Funders: | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council | |||||||||||||||
| Subjects: | Q Science > Q Science (General) R Medicine > RZ Other systems of medicine |
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| URI: | http://etheses.bham.ac.uk/id/eprint/15698 |
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