Many of the tissues in the human body perform important mechanical functions, which allow us to move, perform complex tasks, and navigate our environment. Articular cartilage, meniscus cartilage, and intervertebral disk tissues are just a few examples, and in Dr. Lawrence Bonassar’s lab at the Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering at Cornell University, he and his team are engineering these tissues in the lab, designing them to fit the anatomical needs of individual recipients, and implanting them in non-human large animals in the lab. Dr. Bonassar discusses the ins and outs of the science and technology behind this type of tissue engineering, how the size and shape of each implant must precisely fit the recipient in order to ensure functionality and safety, the challenges that the process presents, and the near-term goals of this research and development.

To learn more about the work being done by The Bonassar Research Group, check out https://bonassar.research.engineering.cornell.edu/.

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