Research

Our current research initiatives are focused on:

  1. Development of engineered tissue constructs (e.g., cartilage and bone-like tissues) to replace diseased or injured organs,

  2. Establishment of simple in vitro disease model system (especially for arthritis, degenerative Intervertebral disc) by microfabricating tissue equivalents with precise spatiotemporal and cellular microenvironments, using cells and Textile polymer based constructs (made up of rapid prototyping, weaving, knitting, nonwoven, Fibre-hydrogel composite).
  3. To design some 'smart' textile architectures for medical applications, such as Hernia mesh, post-surgical adhesion preventive barrier, etc.





  • Tissue Engineering
    • Cartilage & Bone Tissue Engineering
    • Inter-vertebral disc regeneration
    • Establishment of in vitro disease model system
  • Medical Textiles
    • Wound dressings
    • Fibre-Hydrogel composite
    • Hernia Mesh
    • Sutures
  • Polymeric Nano-materials
    • Electrospinning
    • Rapid Prototyping for making novel scaffolds for Tissue engineering
    • Microfluidic chip-based Biosensors
  • Bioreactors
    • Dynamic culture condition for creating specific tissue microenvironment

Research Topics \ Tissue engineering and Biomaterials

Trauma, disease and aging process can lead to critical defects in various organs which cannot be regenerated by itself. The resultant loss of anatomical shape and function can be debilitating or life threatening. Regenerative engineering seeks to achieve functional restoration by using a constellation of factors, such as biomaterials, cells, bioactive molecules, bioreactors. Based on these understanding we try to generate cellular grafts based on autologous cells and porous 3D scaffolds to repair cartilage, bone and muscle tissues, as well as complex tissue interfaces. Scaffolds of wide varieties of 3D architectures and mechanical properties are designed by using concepts of Textile technology (knitting, weaving, nonwoven, braiding) or microfabrication techniques (miniaturized rapid prototyping- Direct-write). Aside from scaffold and appropriate cell source, environmental inputs - such as appropriate biomechanical forces, hydrodynamic fluid transport of nutrients and metabolic waste products and growth factors, are considered to develop in vitro engineered tissue constructs.


Silk braided scaffolds for maxillofacial reconstructive surgery


Modulation of cell morphology in cue of subtle difference in matrix stiffness, eventually affecting differentiation and matrix formation


Injectable silk hydrogel delivering drugs to regenerate damaged disc

Publications

  • J Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Medicine, 2015
  • Biomaterials, 2015, 55, 64-83
  • ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 2014, 6, 183-193
  • Biomacromolecules, 2013, 14, 311-321
  • Acta Biomaterialia, 2012, 8, 3313-3325