kidney

Renal failure is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in the U.S. Long-term chronic renal replacement therapy with hemodialysis provides only intermittent filtration function and continues to have unacceptably high mortality and morbidity rates. Renal transplantation is severely limited by the shortage of donor organs. Tissue engineering of a renal replacement device could provide an alternative to hemodialysis or transplant. We will harvest normal renal cells and use them to construct renal tubules using bioabsorbable polymers. The bioengineered tubules, along with microfabricated capillaries will be implanted in vivo to test for replacement renal function.