The acellular matrix for bladder tissue-engineering: a quantitative MRI study

INTRODUCTION Tissue scaffolds are an integral part of many tissue-engineering and regenerative therapies, as they provide a 3D support to guide cell growth and facilitate the delivery of biochemicals, nutrients, and cells. Recently, there is growing interest in using naturally derived acellular matrices (ACM) as scaffolds [1]. Unlike synthetic materials, ACMs possess native biomechanical and many acquired biological properties, but many questions remain in efforts to optimize scaffold design. To date, imaging of scaffolds has been achieved mainly with microCT, electron and confocal microscopy [2]. In this study, we explore the role of quantitative MRI in scaffold characterization. Specifically, we investigate the bladder ACM and effects of incorporating hyaluronic acid (HA), a natural biomaterial that has shown considerable potential in the development of engineered tissues [3-5].