Cell Instructive Materials for bio fabrication of human tissue
Prof. Paolo Antonio Netti, Università di Napoli Federico II, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Chimica, dei Materiali e della Produzione Industriale and Fondazione Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), Naples
Abstract: Morphogenesis, the intricate process of formation of functional tissues or organs, depends on multifaced and reciprocal interactions between cells and their microenvironment. Successfully generating functional animal or human tissues in vitro requires precise control over the cell morphogenetic program. This involves replicating the native extracellular environment where biochemical signals (such as growth factors, cytokines, and matricellular cues) and biophysical signals (including morphophysical and mechanical cues) are tightly coordinated in space and time. Any failure to replicate these signals correctly can result in dysmorphogenesis.
The next generation of biomaterials must be designed to encode the dynamic presentation and sequestration of specific cellular signals with nanometric spatial resolution. We have shown that nanoengineered programmable surfaces are capable to guide and control specific morphogenetic programs, enabling the in vitro production of microscopically differentiated and histologically competent human tissues. These micrometric tissues can then be used as elementary functional units to fabricate larger pieces of macroscopic tissue through a bottom-up approach. This approach involves the biofabrication of large tissue constructs by using micrometric tissue as functional bioink.
Creating engineered replicas of native tissues with specific morphoanatomical features and well-defined three-dimensional (3D) microarchitectures opens new possibilities in regenerative medicine and Tissue-on-Chip (ToC) technologies. This lecture will critically present recent advancements in these fields, highlighting the potential and challenges of these innovative approaches.
Biosketch: Paolo A. Netti is a full professor of bioengineering at the University of Naples Federico II and PI at the centre for Advanced Biomaterials for health Care of the Italian Institute of Technology. He is known in the international scientific community for having contributed to enriching and expanding the modern concept of biomaterial and extending the boundaries of the application to ever wider sectors of biomedical areas. He has been co-founder and director of the Interdepartmental Center for Research on Biomaterials (CRIB) of Federico II University (2004 – 2010); Chair of the Master's Degree in Materials Engineering from 2005 to 2013; Founder and chair the Master's Degree in Industrial Bioengineering since 2015; He has published over 450 scientific papers accumulating over 20,000 citations, over 30 book chapters, and has filed over 30 patents.
