Research
Engineering vasculature for bone cancer models
Engineering blood vessels (capillaries) in a bone cancer model is vital because the cancer cells travels through this biological highway from distant organs to cause bone cancer. Bone cancer models provide a unique challenge in engineering capillaries through a biomaterial made of stiff calcium phosphates. Understanding both the cell-cell interaction and cell-material interaction (cancer, bone, endothelial, immune cells, and calcium phosphates) to build a better bone cancer model is an important goal of this project.
Designing new methods to fabricate thick vascularized tissues
How to fabricate thick tissues with dense perfusable vasculature is a long-standing problem in the field of tissue engineering? In this project, we will try to solve this problem by designing ingenious methods and techniques. We will be utilizing technologies including various types of 3D bioprinting and other emerging techniques to solve this problem.
Bioengineered arteriovenous graft for kidney dialysis
Dialysis vascular access is currently both the “Lifeline” and the “Achilles heel” of kidney dialysis patients. Dialysis access grafts suffer from clinical complications such as kinking, thrombosis, restenosis, and lack of rapid endothelialization. An anti-kinkable vascular access graft which promotes rapid endothelialization, thus restricting thrombosis and restenosis is a clinical necessity. In this project, we focus on fabricating acellular grafts with regenerative potential.