Superior Growth and Differentiation of Embryonic Stem Cells on 3-Dimensional Bio-Scaffold Reported in Tissue Engineering.

LARCHMONT, N.Y. -- Embryonic stem cells grown on three-dimensional biocompatible scaffolds exhibited more efficient differentiation into a variety of hematopoietic progenitor cells, as reported in the February (Volume 11, Number 1-2) issue of Tissue Engineering, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. The paper is available free online at www.liebertpub.com/ten.

Generating hematopoietic cell lineages directly from embryonic stem (ES) cells remains a significant challenge. Using an innovative 3-D microenvironment composed of highly porous tantalum-based scaffolds maintained in a spinner flask bioreactor, Hui Liu, Ph.D., and Krishnendu Roy, Ph.D., from the University of Texas at Austin, showed that mouse ES cells achieved more efficient hematopoietic differentiation than they do when grown in traditional 2-D suspension cultures. The authors reported a reproducible 2-fold increase in the efficiency of hematopoietic precursor cell generation on the 3-D matrix.

Not only did the ES cells grown on the bio-scaffold develop embryoid bodies, but instead of aggregating as they tend to do in 2-D cultures, the embryoid bodies also integrated into the scaffolds and appeared to be covered by an extracellular matrix.

"This work continues to push forward the identification of optimal environments for the guidance of differentiation responses in engineered tissues, a highly important focus for this field," says Peter C. Johnson, M.D., Chief Business Officer and Chief Medical Officer at Icoria, Inc. and Co-Editor-in-Chief of Tissue Engineering.

Tissue Engineering is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published monthly in print and online that brings together scientific and medical experts in the fields of biomedical engineering, material science, molecular and cellular biology, and genetic engineering. Tissue Engineering is the official journal of the Tissue Engineering Society international, European Tissue Engineering Society and the Asian Tissue Engineering Society. Tables of contents and a free sample issue may be viewed online at www.liebertpub.com/ten.

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Human Gene Therapy, Stem Cells and Development, and Cloning and Stem Cells. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 60 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available at www.liebertpub.com.