title: Controlled formation of biological tubule systems in extracellular matrix gels in vitro.
abstract: Organs such as the lung and the kidney are composed of epithelial and endothelial tubule-forming networks. To engineer such organs, it would be desirable to control the shape, spatial orientation and interconnectedness of the forming tubules. To study this, channels were formed in extracellular matrix (ECM) gels and were subsequently filled with Madin-Darby canine kidney epithelial cells or human microvascular endothelial cells. After 3-5 days, the epithelial cells self-assembled into tubular structures of up to 1 cm, with a lumen lined by a monolayer of polarized epithelial cells at 10 days. In contrast, endothelial cells assembled into tubules with multiple fine branches. We found that a complex pattern of tubular networks of significant length and regular anatomical shape was achieved by molding ECM gels through microfabricated grooved templates.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, 31 Biopolis Way, The Nanos, Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Schumacher
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Phua
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schumacher
authors.forename: J Y
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Ying
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques; D004847:Epithelial Cells; D005109:Extracellular Matrix; D005782:Gels; D006801:Humans; D007684:Kidney Tubules
chemical_list: D005782:Gels