Fabrication and Optimisation of Collagen Scaffolds for Muscle Cell-Supported Angiogenesis
type: CreativeWork
description: Vascularisation is essential for the success of tissue engineered scaffolds, facilitating appropriate oxygen, nutrient, and waste transport in structures larger than diffusion transport can achieve. Combining insights and priorities from the fields of tissue engineering and cultivated meat, this Thesis describes the development of 3D collagen scaffolds capable of supporting differentiated muscle cell populations with the potential for vascularisation. Collagen I scaffolds with varying internal architectures were fabricated and characterised, cell-material interactions were assessed in both 2D and 3D, and human dermal microvascular endothelial cell (HDMEC) behaviour was evaluated in human skeletal muscle cell (HSkMC)-seeded scaffolds. The internal architecture of porous scaffolds is known to influence cell outcomes; therefore, control of structure via the fabrication process is highly desirable. The first stage of this work investigated the impact of collagen slurry composition on the final scaffold architecture for freeze-dried structures. A systematic approach was employed to deconvolute the influence of protonation and acid type on the final collagen scaffold structure, including pore size, shape, and distribution. The relationship between pH and architectural properties was found to deviate from linearity due to the presence and influence of conjugate base and undissociated acid species. This work provided an additional mechanism for architectural control of freeze-dried scaffolds without the need for extensive thermal calibration and allowed collagen scaffolds containing specific architectures to be fabricated for subsequent investigation. Collagen fibres offer cell binding motifs along their surface; however, the behaviour of human muscle cells on collagen substrates requires further exploration. Hence, physio-chemical optimisation of 2D collagen I films (as a proxy for pore walls) was conducted for HSkMCs. It was found that selective attachment occurred via β1…
abstract: Vascularisation is essential for the success of tissue engineered scaffolds, facilitating appropriate oxygen, nutrient, and waste transport in structures larger than diffusion transport can achieve. Combining insights and priorities from the fields of tissue engineering and cultivated meat, this Thesis describes the development of 3D collagen scaffolds capable of supporting differentiated muscle cell populations with the potential for vascularisation. Collagen I scaffolds with varying internal architectures were fabricated and characterised, cell-material interactions were assessed in both 2D and 3D, and human dermal microvascular endothelial cell (HDMEC) behaviour was evaluated in human skeletal muscle cell (HSkMC)-seeded scaffolds. The internal architecture of porous scaffolds is known to influence cell outcomes; therefore, control of structure via the fabrication process is highly desirable. The first stage of this work investigated the impact of collagen slurry composition on the final scaffold architecture for freeze-dried structures. A systematic approach was employed to deconvolute the influence of protonation and acid type on the final collagen scaffold structure, including pore size, shape, and distribution. The relationship between pH and architectural properties was found to deviate from linearity due to the presence and influence of conjugate base and undissociated acid species. This work provided an additional mechanism for architectural control of freeze-dried scaffolds without the need for extensive thermal calibration and allowed collagen scaffolds containing specific architectures to be fabricated for subsequent investigation. Collagen fibres offer cell binding motifs along their surface; however, the behaviour of human muscle cells on collagen substrates requires further exploration. Hence, physio-chemical optimisation of 2D collagen I films (as a proxy for pore walls) was conducted for HSkMCs. It was found that selective attachment occurred via β1…
author: Lester, Rosie
language: eng
keywords: collagen, tissue engineering, angiogenesis, muscle cell culture
license: https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/d3c87b9d-1c6a-4f3a-badc-562843289629/download
license: http://purl.org/NET/rdflicense/allrightsreserved
date published: 2025-04-02
date modified: 2026-07-22T22:23:57Z
provider: Cambridge University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Cambridge

PropertyValue
property ID: DOI
value: 10.17863/CAM.122083