This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. Primary support for the subproject and the subproject's principal investigator may have been provided by other sources, including other NIH sources. The Total Cost listed for the subproject likely represents the estimated amount of Center infrastructure utilized by the subproject, not direct funding provided by the NCRR grant to the subproject or subproject staff. Recent clinical success in bladder tissue engineering demonstrated the feasibility of this technology to combine synthetic polymer scaffolds with host cells for bladder reconstruction. Yet, there remain several unresolved issues. For example, in-vitro culturing of bladder smooth muscle cells for a prolonged time period results in de-differentiation and loss of the contractile phenotype of these cells. Our group previously demonstrated that 3D cultures of bladder SMCs subjected to sustained tension exhibited significantly greater levels of contractile phenotype markers compared to the no-tension control. We hypothesize that exposure of 3D culture of bladder SMCs to appropriate mechanical stimuli leads to guided cell growth and retention of contractile phenotype. The long-term objective of the present study is to develop both biomaterials and a bioreactor system that guide SMC growth for use in the tissue engineering applications.
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