| dc.description.abstract | Tissue engineering utilizes cellular proliferation for tissue growth, which will not only provide unlimited tissue source but also can prevent immune rejections that often occur during organ transplantations and tissue repair. Scaffold, which supplies cells a foundation for growth, is one of the important elements in tissue engineering. Conventional methods for producing scaffolds have some difficulties and disadvantages such as shape design, pore distribution control, and usage of organic solvents.
In this study, a rapid prototyping system and its method for fabricating precise scaffolds are introduced. The scaffold can be fabricated precisely according to predesigned external shape and interior structure. The 3D shape of the scaffold can be designed from basic geometric models or reconstructed from computer tomography (CT) images. The internal architecture of the scaffold is designed according to the cell type and required growth environment. The 3D scaffold model is resliced into 2D cross sections with desired layer thickness. Then, biocompatible polymers are fused and deposited to form the structure of the cross sections layer by layer. Eventually, the porous scaffold will be produced.
Here, we focus on the fabrication of the scaffolds for cartilage and bone regeneration. The factors, that affect scaffold quality such as temperature, pressure, and platform velocity, are discussed. The scaffold produced by this system is highly reproducible and its pore size and connectivity are controllable. Also, the results of cell seeding and mechanical testing indicate that the produced scaffolds satisfy the requirements of tissue engineering. | en_US |