Scientists Find a More Precise Way to Grow Artificial Blood Vessels, Using Magnets
MIT researchers have developed a new method using magnetic forces to precisely engineer artificial blood vessel networks in the lab. This technique allows for the creation of complex, scalable tissue structures that could eventually be used for medical implants.
Why it matters
Improving the ability to grow functional, vascularized tissue is a major hurdle in regenerative medicine and organ replacement therapy.
Add ScienceAlert on Google (MIT) Science may one day give us a way to replace damaged and diseased parts of the body with artificial replacements – but reproducing organs and tissues in the lab isn't easy.
That's especially true for networks of blood vessels , which at the level of fine, thread-like capillaries are microscopic – these capillaries can be as small as 0.005 millimeters (34 times thinner than a human hair), and only let blood cells through in single file .
Researchers led by a team from MIT have now published a study in PNAS that details a way of engineering blood vessels in the lab with significantly greater precision than before.
Getting the blood vessels (and therefore the blood flow ) right is crucial to the success of any lab-grown organ or tissue, as fine capillaries perfuse tissue, delivering oxygen and nutrients.
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