(69g) Invited Speaker: Engineering Tissues for Disease and Drug Studies

Using tissue engineering approaches, we develop 3D human tissues to provide physiologically relevant systems for long term cultivation, weeks to months, in vitro. This approach supports both acute and chronic studies, compartmentalized systems for ease of tracking changes, and interfaces to noninvasive imaging and electronics to facilitate real-time, nondestructive analyses. We utilize appropriate cells, scaffolding and bioreactors to achieve outcomes relevant to the study of normal and disease states, and some of these systems will be discussed. In the long term, we anticipate that these systems will find utility for sustainable studies of slow, low or long term developing challenges to human conditions, where such insights can provide new options into the origins and treatments of diseases.