Human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell-derived hepatocyte-like cells are expected to be utilized indrug screening and regenerative medicine. However, hepatocyte-like cells have not been fully used insuch applications because it is difficult to produce such cells on a large scale. In this study, we tried toestablish a method to mass produce hepatocyte-like cells using a three-dimensional (3D) cell culturebioreactor called the Rotary Cell Culture System (RCCS). RCCS enabled us to obtain homogen

Background—Liver organoids show promise for development as a tissue replacement therapy for patients with end-stage liver disease, but efficient methods for introducing organoids into host livers have not been established. In this study, we aimed to develop a surgical technique to implant hepatic organoids into the liver and assess their engraftment.

Vascular tissue engineering has significant potential to make a major impact on a wide array of clinical problems. Continuedprogress in understanding basic vascular biology will be invaluable in making further advancements. Past and currentachievements in tissue engineering of microvasculature to perfuse organ specific constructs, small vessels for dialysis grafts, andmodified synthetic and pediatric large caliber-vessel grafts will be discussed. An emphasis will be placed on clinical trial resu

Stem cell technologies, especially patient-specific, induced stem cell pluripotency and directed differentiation,hold great promise for changing the landscape of medical therapies. Proper exploitation ofthese methodsmaylead to personalized organ transplants, but to regenerate organs, it is necessary todevelop methods for assembling differentiated cells into functional, organ-level tissues. The generationof three-dimensional human tissue models also holds potential for medical advances in disease

Tissue-engineered blood vessels (TEBV) can serve as vascular grafts and may also play an importantrole in the development of organs-on-a-chip. Most TEBV construction involves scaffolding withbiomaterials such as collagen gel or electrospun fibrous mesh. Hypothesizing that a scaffold-freeTEBV may be advantageous, we constructed a tubular structure (1 mm i.d.) from aligned humanmesenchymal cell sheets (hMSC) as the wall and human endothelial progenitor cell (hEPC) coatingas the lumen. The burst pr

Bone deterioration is a challenge in long-term spaceflight with significant connections to patientsexperiencing disuse bone loss. Prolonged unloading and radiation exposure, definingcharacteristics of space travel, have both been associated with changes in inflammatorysignaling via IL-6 class cytokines in bone. While there is also evidence for perturbed IL-6class signaling in spaceflight, there has been scant examination of the connections betweenmicrogravity, radiation, and inflammatory stimuli

Adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) represent a valuable source of stem cells for regenerative medicine,but the loss of their stemness during in vitro expansion remains a major roadblock. We employed amicrogravity bioreactor (MB) to develop a method for biomaterial-free-mediated spheroid formation tomaintain the stemness properties of ADSCs. ADSCs spontaneously formed three-dimensional spheroidsin the MB. Compared with monolayer culture, the expression levels of E-cadherin and pluripotentmarkers

Because Mycoplasma genitalium is a prevalent and emerging cause of sexually transmitted infections,understanding the mechanisms by which M. genitalium elicits mucosal inflammation is an essential componentto managing lower and upper reproductive tract disease syndromes in women.

The skin is susceptible to different injuries and diseases. One major obstacle in skin tissue engineering is how to developfunctional three-dimensional (3D) substitute for damaged skin. Previous studies have proved a 3D dynamic simulatedmicrogravity (SMG) culture system as a ‘‘stimulatory’’ environment for the proliferation and differentiation of stem cells.Here, we employed the NASA-approved rotary bioreactor to investigate the proliferation and differentiation of humanepidermal stem cells (hEp

Previous reports suggested that culture as 3D aggregates or asspheroids can increase the therapeutic potential of the adultstem/progenitor cells referred to as mesenchymal stem cells ormultipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs). Here we useda hanging drop protocol to prepare human MSCs (hMSCs) asspheroids that maximally expressed TNFα stimulated gene/protein6 (TSG-6), the antiinflammatory protein that was expressed athigh levels by hMSCs trapped in the lung after i.v. infusion andthat largely

Intestinal cells grown in microgravity produce a three-dimensional tissue assembly or “organoid”similar to the human intestinal mucosa, making it an ideal model for enteric infections such ascryptosporidiosis.

3-D, three-dimensional; ML, monolayers; HBTC, human mesenchymal bronchial-tracheal cells; FBS, fetal bovine serum;HBTC, human bronchial tracheal cells; RWV, rotating walled vessel; CMF-PBS, calcium- and magnesium-free phosphate-buffered saline;IHC, immunohistochemistry; TEM, transmission electron microscopy; NHBE, normal human bronchial epithelial; HBE, human bronchoepithelial

In miniature pigs, autologous periostealcells stimulated ex vivo by bone morphogenetic protein2 gene transfer, using liposomes or a combination ofadeno-associated virus (AAV) and adenovirus (Ad) vectors,were applied on a bioresorbable scaffold to chondrallesions comprising the entire medial half of thepatella. The resulting repair tissue was assessed, 6 and26 weeks after transplantation, by histochemical andimmunohistochemical methods. The biomechanicalproperties of the repair tissue were charac

Supplementation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) duringhematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation alleviatescomplications such as graft-versus-host disease, leading to aspeedy recovery of hematopoiesis. To meet this clinical demand,a fast MSC expansion method is required. In thepresent study, we examined the feasibility of using a rotarybioreactor system to expand MSCs from isolated bone marrowmononuclear cells. The cells were cultured in a rotarybioreactor with Myelocult medium containing a

Little is known about the affect of microgravity on gene expression, particularly invivo during embryonic development. Using transgenic zebrafish that express the gfp gene under theinfluence of a β-actin promoter, we examined the affect of simulated-microgravity on GFPexpression in the heart, notochord, eye, somites, and rohon beard neurons. We exposedtransgenic zebrafish to simulated-microgravity for different durations at a variety of developmentaltimes in an attempt to determine periods of su