Rapid prototyping manufacture of complex three dimensional microscaffolds used in regenerative medicine

Extraordinary advances in cellular and molecular biology over the past few years have led to an enriched comprehension of the basic biological processes involved in wound healing. It is now recognised that cytokine-induced cell activation is profoundly influenced by both the biochemical and physical features of the macromolecular matrix. The focus of our research is to investigate the manner by which the matrix exerts this critical modulation of the wound healing response. For this purpose, solid freeform fabrication, rapid prototyping and soft lithography in combination with microfabrication techniques are used to generate 3-dimensional cell adhesion surfaces consisting of biologically relevant matrix molecules deposited with precisely defined micro-scale topological features.