Highly reproducible tissue positioning with tapered pillar design in engineered heart tissue platforms
Milica Dostanic (Leiden University Medical Center, TU Delft - Microelectronics)
Laura Windt (Leiden University Medical Center)
Maury Wiendels (Leiden University Medical Center)
Berend J. van Meer (Leiden University Medical Center)
Christine L. Mummery (University of Twente, Leiden University Medical Center)
Pasqualina M. Sarro (TU Delft - Electronic Components, Technology and Materials)
Massimo Mastrangeli (TU Delft - Electronic Components, Technology and Materials)
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Abstract
We present a novel design of elastic micropillars for tissue self-assembly in engineered heart tissue (EHT) platforms. The innovative tapered profile confines reproducibly the tissue position along the main micropillar axis, increasing the accuracy of tissue contraction force measurement. Polydimethylsiloxane-based pillars were designed and fabricated by wafer-level molding in an hourglass shape, with symmetric tapering producing a restriction for tissue movement in the middle of the pillars’ length. Confinement efficacy of the new geometry was validated by comparing the tissue performance in straight versus tapered (75° or 80° tapering angle) micropillars. While in all three cases compact tissues formed successfully, for both tapered designs the functionality assays evidenced yield increase from 15% to 100%, higher spatial tissue confinement, and correspondingly higher accuracy and smaller dispersion in measurements of tissue contraction force.