Micromachines (Dec 2021)

Engineering Biological Tissues from the Bottom-Up: Recent Advances and Future Prospects

  • Xiaowen Wang,
  • Zhen Wang,
  • Wenya Zhai,
  • Fengyun Wang,
  • Zhixing Ge,
  • Haibo Yu,
  • Wenguang Yang

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/mi13010075
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13, no. 1
p. 75

Abstract

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Tissue engineering provides a powerful solution for current organ shortages, and researchers have cultured blood vessels, heart tissues, and bone tissues in vitro. However, traditional top-down tissue engineering has suffered two challenges: vascularization and reconfigurability of functional units. With the continuous development of micro-nano technology and biomaterial technology, bottom-up tissue engineering as a promising approach for organ and tissue modular reconstruction has gradually developed. In this article, relevant advances in living blocks fabrication and assembly techniques for creation of higher-order bioarchitectures are described. After a critical overview of this technology, a discussion of practical challenges is provided, and future development prospects are proposed.

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