We are still in its infancy when it comes to tissue engineering, an applied science that involves the development and manipulation of molecules, cells, tissues or organs in the laboratory. For now, only the simplest resulting cells are likely to be used in experimental treatments in medicine.
Researchers from the University of Oxford and the robotics company Devanthro in the UK have created a new method of tissue engineering that might represent a major breakthrough in the field. The technique involves growing the cells using a mobile robot skeleton.
Typically, cells used in regenerative medicine are cultured in static environments. Some experiments have already shown that cells can be cultured on mobile structures such as hinges. However, these mechanisms might only stretch or bend the fabric in one direction.
For the creators of the new method (which, for now, is just a concept), if the intention is to grow material designed to move and flex like tendons or muscles, it’s more appropriate to recreate its natural growing environment as accurately as possible. .
The robot takes on the role of the Petri dish
Thus, the interdisciplinary team decided to reproduce the human musculoskeletal system as well as possible in a sort of “robotic Petri dish” (those flat, round containers used in scientific experiments).
As described in an article published in Communications Engineeringof the group naturescientists adapted an open-source robot skeleton designed by Devanthro engineers and created a custom growth environment for cells that can be fitted into it to bend and flex properly.
The location chosen for this tissue farming was the robot’s shoulder joint, which needed to be updated to more accurately approximate human movements, and where a bioreactor was installed. This bioreactor consists of hairs of biodegradable filaments stretched between two anchor points, like a hair scarf, the whole structure being covered with a balloon-like outer membrane.
The filaments were then seeded with human cells and the chamber was filled with a nutrient-rich liquid designed to promote growth. The cells were cultured over a period of two weeks, during which they received a daily “exercise” routine. For 30 minutes each day, the bioreactor was placed on the robot’s shoulder to move around.
Are lab cells grown in motion better than those grown in static environments?
However, while the team observed changes in the cells created in motion that were different from those cultured in a static environment, they still don’t know if these changes were beneficial.
“We have differences outside of the pricing regime [o movimento do biorreator na articulação do ombro do robô], but if these differences mean better cells? We don’t know yet,” lead researcher on the project, Pierre-Alexis Mouthuy, from the Botnar Institute for Musculoskeletal Sciences at the University of Oxford, told the website. The edge. “We are not saying that this system is better than the others. Or is there a particular move that is better than the others. We are just showing the feasibility.
In other words, the team proved that it was possible to grow cells inside a robot skeleton. Now they just need to know if it’s worth it.
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