Tissue Engineering the Vascular Tree.

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Regenerative Medicine
• Tissue Engineering

Background:

• Engineering larger in vitro tissues (> 1 cm³ ) for transplantation and study is hindered by the lack of functional vascular networks.
• Previous successes include 3D capillary networks and large/small arteries, but not a complete hierarchical system with arterioles and venules.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review technologies and methods for creating individual blood vessels and networks.
• To focus on generating vessels from the micron (capillary) to millimeter (arteriole) scale.
• To identify challenges and opportunities in developing model systems of the entire vascular tree.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing technologies and methods for blood vessel construction.
• Focus on techniques enabling the creation of hierarchical vascular structures.
• Exploration of approaches for generating vessels across a range of physiological diameters.

Main Results:

• Significant progress has been made in creating individual vessel types and some networks.
• A critical gap exists in the successful engineering of dynamic, hierarchical vascular networks including arterioles and venules.
• The study highlights the feasibility of generating vessels spanning from capillary to large arteriole dimensions.

Conclusions:

• Developing a complete, living blood vessel network is essential for nutrient and oxygen supply in larger engineered tissues.
• Overcoming challenges in vascular network engineering is key to advancing tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.
• Future opportunities lie in creating comprehensive vascular tree models for in vivo and in vitro applications.