Tissue Engineering of Human Heart Valve Grown In Vitro. Tissue engineering (TE) of heart valves is a new approach to cultivate a functional heart valve from human autologous cells. This innovative study aims to develop the technology to transplant cells onto a 3D biocompatible valve scaffold that is capable of mimicking native valve. The work proposed is a ground breaking study that will encompass development of a new biomaterial, manufacture of scaffolds using the Fused Deposition Modelling ra ....Tissue Engineering of Human Heart Valve Grown In Vitro. Tissue engineering (TE) of heart valves is a new approach to cultivate a functional heart valve from human autologous cells. This innovative study aims to develop the technology to transplant cells onto a 3D biocompatible valve scaffold that is capable of mimicking native valve. The work proposed is a ground breaking study that will encompass development of a new biomaterial, manufacture of scaffolds using the Fused Deposition Modelling rapid prototyping process, hemodynamic optimisation and in vitro cell culture. This will advance our knowledge in cellular and scaffold technologies and may ultimately lead to the development of a TE heart valve.Read moreRead less
Fluid dynamics and mechanical stress of tissue heart valves. Major problems with thrombo-embolic complications and leaflet failure and calcification still exist with bioprosthetic valves. Valves fabricated from polyether urethanes are efficient and can offer more resistance to calcification. No complete study on the haemodynamics and structure interactions is found in literature. Moreover, todate the effect of aortic wall motion on the blood flow has never been examined. A complete holistic ap ....Fluid dynamics and mechanical stress of tissue heart valves. Major problems with thrombo-embolic complications and leaflet failure and calcification still exist with bioprosthetic valves. Valves fabricated from polyether urethanes are efficient and can offer more resistance to calcification. No complete study on the haemodynamics and structure interactions is found in literature. Moreover, todate the effect of aortic wall motion on the blood flow has never been examined. A complete holistic approach to simulataneuosly simulating the fluid dynamics, the valve motion and the stress in a synthetic Polyether urethane valve is proposed. Cell adhesion study will also be carried out. The findings may yield to new insights into valve research.Read moreRead less
Characterization and optimisation of Myomatrix: A novel extracellular matrix hydrogel from muscle. This project would have several sources of benefit for the community. Foremost we will have produced a product that will have a strong commercial application in several fields including basic science and bioengineering. If its full potential were achieved, the development of this innovative new hydrogel would strengthen Australia's standing in the biotechnology field and also enrich specific applic ....Characterization and optimisation of Myomatrix: A novel extracellular matrix hydrogel from muscle. This project would have several sources of benefit for the community. Foremost we will have produced a product that will have a strong commercial application in several fields including basic science and bioengineering. If its full potential were achieved, the development of this innovative new hydrogel would strengthen Australia's standing in the biotechnology field and also enrich specific applications. The knowledge gained from the characterization of this product could also be of benefit to several areas including chemical engineering, tissue engineering, tissue repair, polymer chemistry and food manufacture. The expertise generated and the possibility of collaboration, both academic and with industry would also benefit the community. Read moreRead less
Three-Dimensional Polymer Fibre Scaffolds with Functional Nano-structured Surface. The Partner Organisation to this research, CyGenics Ltd, is a world leader in cell biotechnology. A key challenge faced by the CyGenics and other biotech companies is the provision of tissue scaffolding materials that have the right three-dimensional macroscopic structure plus a suitable nano-structured surface micro-environment, similar to the natural extracellular matrix. This joint project combines expertise in ....Three-Dimensional Polymer Fibre Scaffolds with Functional Nano-structured Surface. The Partner Organisation to this research, CyGenics Ltd, is a world leader in cell biotechnology. A key challenge faced by the CyGenics and other biotech companies is the provision of tissue scaffolding materials that have the right three-dimensional macroscopic structure plus a suitable nano-structured surface micro-environment, similar to the natural extracellular matrix. This joint project combines expertise in polymer fibres, surface engineering and cell culture to tackle the key challenge. The outcome will help position the local polymer fibre and cell culture industries at the forefront of tissue scaffolding materials research and development. Read moreRead less
Titanium Alloy Scaffolds for Osseointegration Implant Materials. Australians' life expectancies are among the highest in the world. Degeneration of load bearing bones in the elderly of age 65 and over often requires the inception of biomaterial implants. For the hip and knee replacements alone, there are over 52,000 operations performed in Australia each year at an estimated cost of over $500 million. The success of these procedures depends on the implant biomaterials. The outcomes of this proje ....Titanium Alloy Scaffolds for Osseointegration Implant Materials. Australians' life expectancies are among the highest in the world. Degeneration of load bearing bones in the elderly of age 65 and over often requires the inception of biomaterial implants. For the hip and knee replacements alone, there are over 52,000 operations performed in Australia each year at an estimated cost of over $500 million. The success of these procedures depends on the implant biomaterials. The outcomes of this project are a new category of porous bone implant materials for load bearing applications.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100115
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$350,000.00
Summary
High-temperature probes for investigating phase transitions and reaction kinetics in thin films, nanostructured materials and biomaterials. This infrastructure for high temperature surface analysis and in-situ diagnostics as a function of temperature and gas environments will enhance Australia's capabilities in creating new materials for devices that will meet needs in medical, communications, environmental and security applications. The facility will enable researchers to understand and exploi ....High-temperature probes for investigating phase transitions and reaction kinetics in thin films, nanostructured materials and biomaterials. This infrastructure for high temperature surface analysis and in-situ diagnostics as a function of temperature and gas environments will enhance Australia's capabilities in creating new materials for devices that will meet needs in medical, communications, environmental and security applications. The facility will enable researchers to understand and exploit interfacial phenomena and to tailor processing-microstructure-composition correlations, so as to design new materials with the best performance possible. Probes with unique capabilities will measure surface morphology, optical properties, elemental composition and crystallographic phase.The facility will be the first in Australia to offer a comprehensive study of structure and properties at high temperature.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0883021
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$350,000.00
Summary
Advanced Surface Characterisation Facility. This proposal underpins a major expansion of surface characterisation resources at La Trobe University, one of Australia's leading providers in this field, and builds associated research programs and collaborations, in particular, with Monash University and Deakin University. New opportunities will be provided for hands-on training in state-of-the-art surface characterisation for postgraduates in fields such as physics, chemistry, nanotechnology, mater ....Advanced Surface Characterisation Facility. This proposal underpins a major expansion of surface characterisation resources at La Trobe University, one of Australia's leading providers in this field, and builds associated research programs and collaborations, in particular, with Monash University and Deakin University. New opportunities will be provided for hands-on training in state-of-the-art surface characterisation for postgraduates in fields such as physics, chemistry, nanotechnology, materials science and engineering. The Australian community will benefit through internationally significant research outcomes leading to, for example, enhanced medical testing technologies, biocompatible medical appliances, better waste water treatment processes, and new battery technologies.Read moreRead less
Designing functional biomaterials with superior cellular interactions. This proposal aims to make a new class of biomaterials that direct important cellular functions such as adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation. This will be achieved by developing materials that leverage a previously unexplored mechanism that was recently identified in my lab: the co-engagement of integrin and syndecan-4 cell receptors. We will use these biomaterials to 1) fabricate 3D printed tissue engineering scaffo ....Designing functional biomaterials with superior cellular interactions. This proposal aims to make a new class of biomaterials that direct important cellular functions such as adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation. This will be achieved by developing materials that leverage a previously unexplored mechanism that was recently identified in my lab: the co-engagement of integrin and syndecan-4 cell receptors. We will use these biomaterials to 1) fabricate 3D printed tissue engineering scaffolds with a superior ability to promote the development of new tissue, and 2) create surfaces that will enable us to answer fundamental scientific questions regarding cell adhesion and cell/material interactions.Read moreRead less
Tissue-like, nonlinearly elastic nanobiomaterials for soft tissue regeneration. The purpose of this project is to advance the discipline of soft tissue engineering and regeneration with novel biomaterials, nanotechnology and novel clinical treatment concepts. The key outcomes include new elastic tissue-like nanobiomaterials, new varieties of medical implants and innovative treatment methodology.
Bone regulation - cell interactions to disease. Many bone disorders such as osteoporosis, Paget's disease and chancer related bone diseases are directly related to disruption of communication pathways between bone cells leading to imbalances in bone remodeling. Although these disorders are common and cause considerable suffering, in most cases little is known about the mechanisms responsible for dysfunctional remodeling. Understanding the communication network between bone cells and their inter ....Bone regulation - cell interactions to disease. Many bone disorders such as osteoporosis, Paget's disease and chancer related bone diseases are directly related to disruption of communication pathways between bone cells leading to imbalances in bone remodeling. Although these disorders are common and cause considerable suffering, in most cases little is known about the mechanisms responsible for dysfunctional remodeling. Understanding the communication network between bone cells and their interaction with drugs is essential in order to develop new therapies and to effectively design novel biological compatible bone implants. This research proposal closely aligns with national research priority two, i.e., promoting and maintaining good health (ageing well, ageing productively).Read moreRead less