Tissue engineering involves the seeding and attachment of human cells onto a scaffold. Of fundamental importance to the survival of most engineered tissues is gas and nutrient exchange. In nature, this is accomplished by virtue of microcirculation, which is the feeding of oxygen and nutrients to tissues and removing waste at the capillary level. Bacterial cellulose, a natural polymer, is an ideal scaffolding material for tissue engineering due to its proven biocompatibility, mechanical integrity, hydroexpansivity, and its stability under a wide range of conditions. Irreversible Electroporation (IRE) is a process in which the delivery of electrical pulses increases the transmembrane potential which leads  to the creation of irrecoverable defects in the membrane thereby killing the cells. We hypothesize that by using IRE to kill the bacteria in specific locations and particular times during cellulose production, we can introduce conduits in the overall scaffold by preventing cellulose deposition at these sites.

Electrical manipulation of bacteria to control nanocellulose architecture for biomedical applications

245th National Meeting (2013)

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