Multiscale Bioassembly and Fabrication of Physiological Structures

The fabrication of physiologically relevant human tissues requires control over cell organization, extracellular microenvironments, and tissue architecture across multiple length scales. In this talk, I will describe our efforts to build physiological structures using bioassembly, biofabrication, biomaterials, and bioprinting. Inspired by developmental processes, we use spatial control of cells and materials together with dynamic microenvironments to guide cell organization, differentiation, and tissue maturation over time. By linking processes at the cellular, microtissue, and larger tissue scales, vascular, neural, and other functional components can be incorporated into organized tissue structures. I will also discuss how functional measurements can help clarify the relationship between tissue architecture and physiological performance. These approaches may improve the construction of human tissue models for studying development and disease, evaluating therapeutic responses, and advancing regenerative medicine.

Dr. Qi Gu is a Full Professor at Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. He also serves as Associate Dean and Director of the Center for Biomanufacturing at UCAS (University of Chinese Academy of Sciences). His research focuses on biomaterials, 3D/4D bioprinting, biofabrication, and stem cell engineering. He has published over 40 peer-reviewed papers in journals including Nature, Cell Stem Cell, Advanced Materials, and Nature Communications. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and serves on the editorial boards of Biofabrication, Bioactive Materials, Cell Proliferation, and BMEMat.