The Laboratory for the Bioengineering of Tissues (BioTis U1026) is a Unité Mixte de Recherche (UMR) that combines individuals from the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM) and the Université de Bordeaux. This group has been a national leader in the field of bone and vascular tissue engineering for over 30 years.
The research at BioTis (U1026) spans from the fundamental aspects of cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions, all the way to the development of translational models and their clinical applications in vascular, orthopedic, oral and maxillofacial surgery. This has been made possible by a multidisciplinary team of scientists from the INSERM and the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), of research professors from the Université de Bordeaux, of clinicians from the University Hospital Center (CHU), and the many Masters, Ph.D.s and Post-docs in training.
Our research strategy combines 3 complementary approaches: 1) a classic “top-down” tissue engineering approach where whole tissues are produced, 2) an intermediate approach where regenerative starting points are produced, such as a periosteum-like vascularized membranes, that can guide healing in vivo, 3) a “bottom-up” approach where small components can be prepared through the integration of various biofabrication methods. In a few years, we have achieved a level of expertise and global visibility in the field of laser-assisted bioprinting. The recent decision of the INSERM to create an Accélérateur de Recherche Technologique (ART) on Bioprinting at BioTis will expand our expertise in additive and subtractive biofabrication methods in order to be in a position to meet any biofabrication challenge faced by the INSERM community.
The ART was officially founded in 2017 and will evolve to develop three clusters of expertise: a cellular group, a printing group and a construct analysis group. The system is based on a close collaboration with the other laboratories of INSERM to combine our respective expertise in order to produce new and innovative bioprinted tissues. The ART is a unique opportunity for research teams to take advantage of these technologies and establish new borders on their own research, without having to invest and develop the expertise needed for bioprinting.
