A Strategy for Depositing Different Types of Cells in Three Dimensions to Mimic Tubular Structures in Tissues

摘要

This report describes a general strategy to fabricate tubular structures with multiple types of cells as different layers of the tube walls. By using a stress-induced rolling membrane (SIRM) technique, tubes with controllable sizes were obtained. By rolling, simple patterns on 2D membranes are transformed into complex patterns in 3D tubes. These tubes could mimic blood vessels in which different types of cells constitute different layers of the tubular wall, and cells on certain layers align either longitudinally or circumferentially around the tube, mimicking their natural arrangement in vivo. This method has the potential to mimic the structures and functions of many kinds of tubular tissues that naturally occur in vivo, and may be further used for tissue engineering.