(119g) Microfabrication Approaches to Control Stem Cell Fate and Function

The promise of stem cell based tissue engineering hinges upon the generation of functional derivatives that can act to augment, replace, or regenerate diseased tissues. A critical bottleneck towards this goal is efficiently maturing pluripotent derived populations. However, the inability to recapitulate aspects of the complex developmental niche limits the success of deriving cells that match their mature counterparts. Here we describe a range of approaches that enable molecular testbeds, for elucidating the role of microenvironment cues in differentiation, morphogenesis, and function. These approaches, which include leveraging biomaterial scaffolds, micropatterned substrates, and microfluidic devices, will be discussed in the context of vascular and hepatic lineage specification.