Tissue Engineering and Mechanobiology

Course

URL study guide

https://studiegids.vu.nl/en/courses/2024-2025/B_TISSUEENG

Course Objective

At the end of the course, the student is able to:
• Describe and understand the principles of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine
• Describe and understand the clues derived from embryogenesis, and how these may be implemented in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine
• use the knowledge provided in this course to formulate strategies to translate and clinically implement the principles of tissue engineering (“from bench to bedside”)

Course Content

This course addresses regenerative medicine, also referred to as reparative medicine or tissue engineering, which is the regeneration and remodeling of tissue in vivo in order to repair, replace, maintain or enhance organ function, as well as to engineer and grow functional tissue substitutes in vitro for implantation in vivo as biological substitutes for damaged or diseased tissues and organs. Regenerative medicine is a multidisciplinary field involving biology, medicine, and engineering. Regenerative medicine will revolutionize surgical disciplines, and is expected to become the surgical golden standard of the upcoming decade by supporting and activating the body’s natural healing. The course will address:
- the general build-up of organisms (organs, tissues, and their basic building blocks: the cells and the matrices surrounding them) and the various modes/levels of communication and organization.
- lessons to be learned from embryogenesis and epimorphic regeneration (regeneration of entire tissues and organs, e.g. observed in amphibians)
- basics of cell biology and mechanobiology
- the main regenerative medicine building blocks: biomaterials, biologics (inductive stimuli) and (stem) cells.
- how to “translate” basic regenerative medicine/tissue engineering principles from fundamental research via translational research towards clinical implementation (“from bench to bedside”)
- examples of tissue engineering research on the VU campus

Teaching Methods

lectures: 17 Tutorial: 4h Student presentations: 2h Exam: 2.5h (dyslectic people: +0.5h)

Method of Assessment

Written exam (multiple choice + open questions)

Literature

Research articles, lectures (including notes) uploaded on Canvas
Course period1/09/2431/08/25
Course level3.00 EC

Language of Tuition

  • English

Study type

  • Master