Nicholas A. Kotov1, Meghan J. Cuddihy1, Jung Woo Lee1, Richard C. Doty2, and Joong Hwan Bahng2. (1) Chemical Engineering Department, Materials Science Department, Biomedical Engineering Department, University of Michigan, 2300 Hayward, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, (2) Nico Technologies Corp., Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Efficacy of in-vitro testing can be significantly improved provided that better ex-vivo models for different organs and tissues are developed. A large body of research indicates that cultured cells organized in three-dimensions (3D)behave a lot more closely to the original tissues and retain more natural functions than the cells in 2D cultures. However the currently available 3D scaffolds have either poor optical properties or impair cellular migration. Both of these factors are detrimental for scaffold utilization for rapid drug screening currently
used in industry. A new type of scaffold was developed based on inverted colloidal crystal (ICC) topology, which can resolve these issues and result in adequate
ex vivo models with 3D cellular organization resembling that of original organs. Additionally, the ICC scaffolds can be standardized exceptionally well,
which is critical for reproducibility of the drug screening assays. The ex vivo replicas of liver and bone marrow made in well plate format adaptable for drug
screening will be demonstrated.