Tissue Engineering of the Liver Presentation By: Cara Nunez

Background Information Over 6,500 liver transplants are performed annually in the U.S. There are currently 17,000 children and adults in the United States approved for a liver transplant and waiting for a donor liver No noticeable increase in liver donors

Problem Being Solved Most patients in need of a liver transplant suffer from chronic conditions Hepatitis (swelling of the liver) and Cirrhosis (permanent scarring of the liver) can lead to Acute Liver Failure Many other causes of liver failure Ingestion of too many toxins (alcohol) Communicable diseases Some chemotherapy medications Signs of liver failure: jaundice, dark urine, abdominal swelling, excessive fatigue

Current Treatment The first human liver transplant was performed by Thomas Starzyl in 1963 Transplantation is now the preferred treatment for a failing/failed liver It is also possible to transplant just a piece of liver as an allograft Most transplants are done for patients with chronic liver diseases leading to cirrhosis

Current Technology (Cont.) Seeding liver cells onto an extracellular matrix (scaffold) made of porous biodegradable materials This seeded shell is placed in either a static or dynamic bioreactor in which the cells might grow, proliferate and hopefully differentiate Most ex vivo livers are currently used for researching the functions of liver cells themselves

Limitations Not everything is known yet about how the liver works How cells differentiate and organize themselves What factors might help stimulate “natural” liver growth Liver has high cell density Liver contains specific cell sub-populations that are hard to artificially reproduce Also difficult to artificially reproduce tiny capillaries, ducts, and pores

Future More highly developed scaffolds that incorporate the micro structures within the liver Complete production of functional human livers Increased availability and affordability

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