|
The focus of the Laboratory for Transplantation and Tissue Engineering's research is the design of new tissues that are created in the laboratory using functional cells plus biodegradable polymer scaffolds appropriately configured.
The laboratory has studied several organ systems including liver, bone, cartilage, intestine, nerve and muscle, and urologic tissue. This ongoing effort involves materials science for the polymer scaffolds, cell biology for cell-matrix interactions, and surgical science for implantation and new tissue creation. The liver has been most difficult because of the severe constraints of oxygenation and high metabolic rate of individual cells. Mild injury and hypoxia can result in death of the cell. Therefore, a large part of the research effort has been to understand this and optimize systems wherein sufficient cells survive for function.
The laboratory has been successful in creating new cartilage in vivo using polymeric templates combined with chondrocytes in culture. The cartilage is in the approximate dimensions of the polymer template and appears to be normal cartilage. Tubes lined by enterocytes for intestinal replacement or urothelium for urologic reconstruction have been made. Likewise, new bone can be formed with elements of marrow in its center.
Contact Information:
Phone: 617-355-7738
Fax: 617-730-0409
|
