Fabrication of tissue scaffolds using projection micro-stereolithography

In vitro liver models are a critical tool in pharmaceutical research, yet standard hepatocyte cultures fail to capture the complexity of in vivo tissue behavior. One of the most critical features of the in vivo liver is the extensive microvasculature which allows for the delivery of nutrients and metabolites without exposing hepatocytes to de-differentiating fluidic shear stresses. A new liver tissue scaffold design able to capture this histological organization may therefore improve the functional longevity of seeded hepatocytes. The additive manufacturing technique of projection micro-stereolithography (PuSL) proved capable of building non-cytotoxic and highly complex 3D structures with microvasculature on the order of 20 um inner diameter. While extensive biological testing remains to be carried out, the built structures reveal much promise in PuSL as a method of tissue scaffold fabrication in terms of in vivo mimicking architecture. 3 4 Acknowledgements I would like to thank Micha S.B. Raredon and Professor Linda Griffith for their encouragement, mentorship, and support, as well as the opportunity to work on this engaging and challenging project. I would also like to thank all of the Course 3 faculty with whom I have had the pleasure of learning, especially Professors am also greatly indebted to John Rogosic, PhD, for his convincing me that getting a 49/100 on a 3.022 exam neither meant the end of the world nor that I literally understood less than half the material in the class. Lastly, I would like to thank my mother, sister, father, and Juan Carlos Ybarra for their love.