About Us

Welcome to the Osteo Engineering Lab website. Our research focuses on providing tools for the surgical reconstruction or regeneration of skeletal structures and includes the use of Computer Aided Design (CAD) software to prepare patient-specific implants, implant components, and surgical devices that are rendered via additive manufacturing (3D printing). We have used these techniques to prepare restorative cranial implants for patients. However, a major focus of our preclinical research program has been the 3D printing of tissue engineered (resorbable) bone scaffolds and metallic skeletal fixation devices. In our tissue engineering research we seed cells, for example Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) and/or vascular progenitor cells, onto solid, 3D printed polymer or hydrogel scaffolds manufactured by different biofabrication techniques such as Melt Electrowriting (MEW), Electrospinning (ESP), Chaotic Printing and Digital Light Processing (DLP). Those constructs may then be cultured, perhaps in a bioreactor, before implantation. The intent of pre-culturing scaffolds is to fill and/or coat them with tissue that the body perceives as a “tissue engineered bone graft.” Our work with 3D metal printing involves two alloys: (1) NiTi, also referred to as nitinol or nickel-titanium, which is focused on the fabrication of skeletal fixation devices i.e., stiffness matched to the surrounding bone, and (2) Magnesium alloys for the fabrication of the same but resorbable.