Takahiro Kakegawa

Acceleration of Vascular Sprouting from Fabricated Perfusable Vascular-Like Structures

Fabrication of vascular networks is essential for engineering three-dimensional thick tissues and organs in the emerging fields of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. In this study, we describe the fabrication of perfusable vascular-like structures by transferring endothelial cells using an electrochemical reaction as well as acceleration of subsequent endothelial sprouting by two stimuli: phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and fluidic shear stress. The electrochemical transfer of cells was achieved using an oligopeptide that formed a dense molecular layer on a gold surface and was then electrochemically desorbed from the surface. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), adhered to gold-coated needles (ϕ600 μm) via the oligopeptide, were transferred to collagen gel along with electrochemical desorption of the molecular layer, resulting in the formation of endothelial cell-lined vascular-like structures. In the following culture, the endothelial cells migrated into the collagen gel and formed branched luminal structures. However, this branching process was strikingly slow (>14 d) and the cell layers on the internal surfaces became disrupted in some regions. To address these issues, we examined the effects of the protein kinase C (PKC) activator, PMA, and shear stress generated by medium flow. Addition of PMA at an optimum concentration significantly accelerated migration, vascular network formation, and its stabilization. Exposure to shear stress reoriented the cells in the direction of the medium flow and further accelerated vascular network formation. Because of the synergistic effects, HUVECs began to sprout as early as 3 d of perfusion culture and neighboring vascular-like structures were bridged within 5 d. Although further investigations of vascular functions need to be performed, this approach may be an effective strategy for rapid fabrication of perfusable microvascular networks when engineering three-dimensional fully vascularized tissues and organs.

Rapid engineering of endothelial cell-lined vascular-like structures in in situ crosslinkable hydrogels

Fabrication of perfusable vascular networks in vitro is one of the most critical challenges in the advancement of tissue engineering. Because cells consume oxygen and nutrients during the fabrication process, a rapid fabrication approach is necessary to construct cell-dense vital tissues and organs, such as the liver. In this study, we propose a rapid molding process using an in situ crosslinkable hydrogel and electrochemical cell transfer for the fabrication of perfusable vascular structures. The in situ crosslinkable hydrogel was composed of hydrazide-modified gelatin (gelatin-ADH) and aldehyde-modified hyaluronic acid (HA-CHO). By simply mixing these two solutions, the gelation occurred in less than 20 s through the formation of a stable hydrazone bond. To rapidly transfer cells from a culture surface to the hydrogel, we utilized a zwitterionic oligopeptide, which forms a self-assembled molecular layer on a gold surface. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells adhering on a gold surface via the oligopeptide layer were transferred to the hydrogel within 5 min, along with electrochemical desorption of the oligopeptides. This approach was applicable to cylindrical needles 200-700 µm in diameter, resulting in the formation of perfusable microchannels where the internal surface was fully enveloped with the transferred endothelial cells. The entire fabrication process was completed within 10 min, including 20 s for the hydrogel crosslinking and 5 min for the electrochemical cell transfer. This rapid fabrication approach may provide a promising strategy to construct perfusable vasculatures in cell-dense tissue constructs and subsequently allow cells to organize complicated and fully vascularized tissues while preventing hypoxic cell injury.

Tissue engineering based on electrochemical desorption of an RGD-containing oligopeptide.

This paper describes a non‐invasive approach for efficient detachment of cells adhered to a gold substrate via a specific oligopeptide. Detachment is effected by an electrical stimulus. The oligopeptide contains cysteine, which spontaneously forms a gold–thiolate bond on a gold surface. This chemical adsorption reaches > 95% equilibrium within 10 min after immersion of a gold‐coated substrate in a solution containing the peptide. The peptide is reversibly desorbed from the surface within 5 min of application of a negative electrical potential. By taking advantage of this simple adsorption and desorption mechanism, cells can be grown on an oligopeptide‐functionalized gold surface and can be efficiently detached as single cells or cell sheets by application of a negative electrical potential. This approach was also applied to the surface of gold‐coated microrods. Capillary‐like microchannels were formed in collagen gel by transferring endothelial cells to the internal surfaces of the microchannels. During subsequent perfusion culture, the enveloped endothelial cells migrated into the collagen gel and formed luminal structures, which sprouted from the microchannels. This technique has the potential to provide a fundamental tool for the engineering of thick cell sheets as well as vascularized tissues and organs. Copyright

Electrical detachment of cells for engineering capillary-like structures in a photocrosslinkable hydrogel

A major challenge in tissue engineering is the fabrication of vascular networks capable of delivering oxygen and nutrients throughout tissue constructs. Because cells located more than a few hundred micrometers away from the nearest capillaries are susceptible to oxygen shortages, it is crucial to develop microscale technologies for engineering a vascular structure in three-dimensionally thick tissues. This study describes an electrochemical approach for fabricating capillary-like structures precisely aligned within micrometer distances, the internal surfaces of which are covered with vascular endothelial cells in a photocrosslinkable hydrogel.

Cell Detachment for Engineering Three-Dimensional Tissues

Dynamic control of the biointerface between adherent cells and materials may provide a promising approach for the detachment and manipulation of cells in vitro. Thermoresponsive, electroresponsive, photoresponsive, pH-responsive, and magnetic systems have been reported as mechanisms for such control. These systems have been utilized to detach specific cells in a spatially controlled manner and to assemble cellular building blocks such as cell sheets and spheroids to engineer three-dimensional tissues and organs. Because assembled and thicker tissues require vascular networks to supply oxygen and nutrients throughout the constructs, some of these systems have also been employed to fabricate vascular structures in engineered tissues. This chapter provides an overview of the current technological advancements in the dynamic control of the biointerface, with particular emphasis on tissue engineering applications. A major focus of this chapter is on the application of electrochemistry to cell detachment and to engineering vascular structures. Current challenges and future prospects of these systems have been discussed.