Algae-containing beads comprising a microorganism such as unicellular microalgae, an insoluble carbon source such as char, water, and a crosslinked organic matrix. The beads can further contain clay, such as kaolin.

This invention relates to three-dimensional myocardial infarct organoids and methods of making and using the same for screening compounds that improve cardiac function and compounds that diminish cardiac function.

A structure for culturing cells includes growth medium regions on a surface of the structure. Each of the growth medium regions includes a growth medium surface configured to receive and promote growth in a cell that is being cultured. The structure includes a non-growth medium. The non-growth medium includes a non-growth medium surface configured to receive the cell that is being cultured.

Provided is a method of preparing a hydrogel composition including a uniform content of calcium phosphate, wherein a hydrogel composition prepared by the method has a uniform content of calcium phosphate, and thus may be used to quantify phosphates contained in the hydrogel composition. Provided is an in-vitro 3D osteoporosis model including a calcium phosphate hydrogel composition, wherein osteoblasts and osteoclasts may be three-dimensionally co-cultured inside a biogel, such that the osteoporosis model may be fabricated according to an intended use or clinical stage. Further, the model contains a calcium phosphate hydrogel with a uniform content of phosphate and thus enables quantification of calcium phosphate through measurement of phosphates, and therefore, the model may be used to screen candidate compounds for an osteoporosis drug and may effectively predict therapeutic effects of the drug on osteoporosis.

The present invention is to provide a method for producing a cartilage tissue which comprises a step of providing a substrate for producing cell aggregates provided with a plurality of spots comprising a copolymer containing recurring units derived from monomers represented by the following formulae (I) and (II):

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[wherein U.sup.a1, U.sup.a, R.sup.a1, R.sup.a2 and R.sup.b are as described in the specification and claims] on a substrate having an ability to suppress adhesion of cells; a step of seeding human cartilage progenitor cells which are positive for PRRX1 protein and derived from pluripotent stem cells on the substrate; a step of producing cell aggregates by culturing the cells; and a step of culturing the aggregates to produce a cartilage tissue.

A stackable raising seedling device has a device body and a floating planting board. The device body has raising seeding hole parts disposed at intervals and holes disposed intervals. The raising seeding hole pans and the holes are staggered in parallel and with each other along a first direction, the raising seeding hole part and the holes are staggered in parallel with each other along a second direction, and the holes of the first direction and the raising seeding hole parts of the second direction are adjacently arranged. The raising seeding hole pan can receive a culture medium layer, the culture medium layer has an agar gel, and the agar gel is composed of a plant growth nutrient, agar powder and water. The present disclosure improves the overall seed germination rate and the quality of planted crops when massively planting the planted crops.

A spheroid tissue microarray comprises an array of tissue spheroids embedded within a porous mold. The product may be impregnated with a wax or resin and sectioned, and contains spheroids which are precisely located in a regular geometric grid. A method of manufacturing a spheroid tissue microarray comprises the steps of: forming a mold of porous material from liquid mold material in a casting mold, and allowing the liquid mold material to set; removing the porous mold from the casting mold; topping up the porous mold with further liquid mold material, and allowing recesses to form in the surface of the mold by the drawing-in of liquid mold material through shrinkage as the liquid mold material sets; placing tissue spheroids into the recesses in the surface of the porous mold; and sealing the tissue spheroids within the mold by topping off with liquid mold material and allowing the liquid mold material to set. An alternative method comprises the steps of: forming a mold of porous material from liquid mold material in a casting mold; allowing the liquid mold material to set; removing the porous mold from the casting mold; placing spheroids in recesses at the bases of wells in the mold of porous material; and sealing the spheroids within the porous mold by adding further porous material on top of the spheroids; wherein the recesses at the bases of the wells in the porous material are formed by protrusions of the casting mold carrying further, nipple-shaped, protrusions.

A method to prepare synthetic hydrogels having tissue-specific properties, and a hydrogel comprising a polymer matrix comprising a plurality of peptide, are provided.

Methods for producing hepatocytes from pluripotent human stem cells are disclosed herein. The stem cells are plated on a cell culture substrate comprising two laminins. The stem cells are then exposed to different cell culture mediums to induce differentiation. The resulting hepatocytes have higher metabolic capacity compared to hepatocytes cultured on different substrates.

Disclosed is a microfluidic device implanted in an ex-vivo skin explant to control perfusion, diffusion and collection of molecules over long periods. Also disclosed is a method for assessing permeation or infusion of a biomarker of interest through the skin and to a method for detecting and/or quantifying a biomarker of interest contained in the liquid secreted by the ex-vivo skin explant.