Successful dermal
replacement with acelluar
tissue constructs depends
on incorporation into the
recipient vasculature via
cellular invasion. This
process, however, takes 14
to 28 days or more, and it is
during this period that the
construct is prone to
infection, sloughing, and
failure. Little is known about
the chemical, mechanical,
and geometric
characteristics that best
promote rapid cellular invasion.
Ongoing work in our laboratory suggests that our novel, customizable
microfluidic hydrogel scaffolds may lead to the development of more
rapidly-vascularized – and therefore successful – dermal replacements
products.