A 3D printed tubular construct, such as a nephron, with or without embedded vasculature as well as methods of printing tubular tissue constructs are described.

The present invention provides novel compositions comprising multipotent cells or microvascular tissue, wherein the cells or tissue has been sterilized and/or treated to inactivated viruses, and related methods of using these compositions to treat or prevent tissue injury or disease in an allogeneic subject.

The invention is directed to a nerve cap for covering a nerve stump, comprising a tubular body with a closed end and an open end and essentially consisting of biodegradable polymeric material to prevent or treat symptoms caused by neuroma. The polymeric material preferably comprises a poly(DL-lactide-co--caprolactone) copolymer obtained by the copolymerizaton of DL-lactide and -caprolactone, which copolymer has a lactide content of 51-75 mol %.

A compression and kink resistant tubular implant for nerve repair. The implant includes a tubular biopolymeric membrane and a polymeric supporting filament. Also provided is a shaped compression resistant implant for ridge augmentation in dental surgery. Methods for producing the implants are also provided.

In one aspect, methods of promoting asymmetric nerve growth and/or regeneration are described herein. In some embodiments, such a method comprises exposing a population of transected or severed nerves to a first molecular growth cue and to a second molecular growth cue. The population of transected nerves comprises one or more nerves of a first nerve type and one or more nerves of a second nerve type differing from the first nerve type. Additionally, the first molecular growth cue preferentially promotes growth of the first nerve type, as compared to the second nerve type. Similarly, the second molecular growth cue preferentially promotes growth of the second nerve type, as compared to the first nerve type. Moreover, the first molecular growth cue is spatially separated from the second molecular growth cue.

The present invention includes a composition comprising a tissue engineered axonal tract, as well as a method of making it. The invention also includes methods for treating nerve injury in a subject by contacting the site of nerve injury with a tissue engineered axonal tract, wherein the axons from the tissue engineered axonal tract fuse with axons from the subject.

A biomaterial for the treatment of spinal cord or of peripheral nerve injury, obtainable by: a) treating a hyaluronic acid derivative with a coating solution promoting Neuronal Stem Cells adhesion, branching and differentiation; b) contacting isolated Neuronal Stem Cells with the hyaluronic acid derivative obtained from step a) and culturing and expanding the absorbed cells in the presence of growth or neurotrophic factors selected from FGF (basic fibroblast growth factor), CNTF (ciliary neurotrophic factor), BDNF (brain derived neurotrophic factor) and GDNF (glial derived neurotrophic factor) or mixtures thereof.

A 3D printed tubular construct, such as a nephron, with or without embedded vasculature as well as methods of printing tubular tissue constructs are described.

A method includes covering or contacting a portion of a parathyroid of a subject with a shield including extraembryonic tissue and/or a parathyroid protective injection. The covering occurs during a neck or reconstructive surgery of the subject.

A method of producing an acellular cornea includes steps of subjecting a cornea of an animal to a decellularization process, and has not the step of treating the cornea with a protease, a chelating agent, a detergent, a glycerol, or a combination thereof. When a native cornea is processed by the method, the native structure and conformation of the native cornea are preserved while immunogenic matters are reduced to a level that the thus produced cornea may serve as a three-dimensional scaffold for host cells to grow thereon after transplantation.