the BIG PICTURE

Robert G. Dennis, Ph.D.


Bob's Home Page   Current Research    Muscle Mechanics Lab (U of M)     Biomechatronics Group @ MIT

Why:
    use tissues from live animals?
    mix tissues together in culture?
    interface tissues with synthetic components?
    integrate tissues into robots?

In my opinion, most research in Tissue Engineering is nothing more than cell biology.  In many cases, there is no engineering involved.  In addition to discovering new knowledge, the mission of the Engineer is to solve human problems through the application of technology.  The problems that Tissue Engineers can and should be able to solve are:

How do we develop methods to test drugs and other chemicals on living tissue systems in a humane and effective way?
How can we reduce or eliminate animal testing using engineered tissue models?
How do tissues interact with one another in complex tissue systems during development and normal function, injury, and aging?
How can we start with just a few cells, and end up making replacement tissues and organs?
Can living components improve the efficiency, robustness and general usefulness of engineered devices?
Can we make prosthetic devices that contain engineered tissues from the user, for improved function and biological interfacing?

In the process of solving these problems we will discover new cellular mechanisms, and better understand the emergent properties of tissues and organ systems.  Many of the most important insights into biology arose from efforts to solve practical problems.  To paraphrase Louis Pasteur, "... there is no distinction between applied and basic science, the distinction is only whether the science is done well or poorly."

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