Topic

#27: Tissue Engineering II

Name:





1. Describe the role of biomaterials in tissue engineering.









2. Currently in testing is a cell therapy known as allo-transplantation of pancreatic
islet cells. From your base of knowledge and this limited information, describe the
therapy and what it treats.










a. Even though the allo-tranplantation is in clinical trials and is a promising first step
towards treatment of patients, it has many limitations. Describe these limitations
and why a tissue engineering approach has the potential to revolutionize the
treatment of these same patients.









b. Why is protection of islet cells essential in the tissue engineered construct?

c. Early attempts at using microencapsulated islet cells failed due

to necrosis of cells at the center of the microencapulations.
Describe the cause for this failure.








d. The membrane must be permeable to insulin (MW ~5000 Da), but what negative
effects might a protein-permeable membrane have on the device success/failure?

e. Estimate the diffusion coefficient of insulin (hydrodynamic radius of 2.7 nm). You
will need the values listed in the table on the next page.

f. If the rate of release needs to be 5 x 10-16 mol/s in order to control blood glucose
levels, determine the ratio of porosity to tortuosity of a biomaterial membrane 10
m thick surrounding an islet of 140 m radius. Assume perfect sink conditions
since the insulin concentration will be much higher in the islet compared to
surrounding fluid (blood). Also assume steady state conditions, zero order kinetics
across the membrane, and a partition coefficient of 1 (not something weve
discussed). Ignore constrictivity.

Boltzman constant
Viscosity of water
Concentration of insulin in islet
Concentration of insulin in surroundings

1.38 x 10-23 m2kg s-2K-1

0.0007 kg m-1s-1
0.231 M
0 M

3. Describe the tissue engineering product being researched by In Vivo Therapeutics

for clinical use. What materials are they using for this therapy?

4. For what types of tissue engineering constructs is fatigue of particular concern?

5. Describe the role of bioreactors in the development of three separate types of tissue
engineering applications.