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Access Type

WSU Access

Date of Award

January 2018

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.S.

Department

Biomedical Engineering

First Advisor

Mai Lam

Abstract

Atherosclerosis is a leading cause of coronary artery disease. Current treatment methods offer temporary solutions so engineered vessels are becoming a promising alternative. In this study we aim to demonstrate the feasibility of using adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) to create engineered vessels. Our hypothesis is that TGF-β1 and ascorbic acid (AA) will positively affect collagen production in ASCs which can suggest its potential use in other tissue engineered applications. ASC ring formation occurs once the cells begin to roll around a center post. Rings were maintained in media for 12 days and then tensile tested to determine mechanical properties. These tissue rings can also be stacked into a tubular structure to create ASC vessels. Like the rings, these tissue-engineered vessels were also tensile tested. Histology was performed to quantify collagen expression for both rings and vessels. Rings and vessels with a higher concentration of both TGF-β1 and AA demonstrated improved mechanical properties as noted by their ultimate tensile strength. Additionally, histology showed an increase in collagen expression in both rings and vessels when TGF-β1 and AA concentrations were increased. This work shows that increasing the concentration of TGF-β1 and AA during ring formation was indicative of higher levels of collagen production. Thus, future developments using ASCs can provide advantageous outcomes.

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