2026-09-20T22:20:06Zhttps://wakespace.lib.wfu.edu/server/oai/request

oai:null:10339/822592026-09-02T12:38:16Zcom_10339_14934col_10339_38132

Knutson, Dylan Thomas 2017-06-15T08:36:23Z 2017-12-14T09:30:09Z 2017 https://wakespace.lib.wfu.edu/handle/10339/82259 Propulsion in the gut is orchestrated by a rhythmic complex called the neuromuscular apparatus which includes smooth muscle, enteric neurons, and interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC). Depletions of these cell populations are associated with several motility disorders, and their significant effects on function are uncertain. In this thesis, several different approaches are studied to understand the relationship of each key gastrointestinal cell to tissue function. Here, the focus is on the specific contribution of each cell population to tissue function using physiology of ex vivo tissue, bioengineered tissues, and a 3D printed platform. Initiation of muscular relaxation was dependent on a functional neural population. Then, ICC transduced neural-mediated relaxation through electrical pacing, in order to relax muscle with enhanced rhythm and coordination. These promising models can provide approaches for an investigator test new hypotheses by modeling clinical populations to study, alter, or repair function. en Wake Forest University Diabetes Disease Gastrointestinal Gastroparesis Interstitial Cells of Cajal Tissue Engineering NOVEL APPROACHES TO TESTING GASTRO INTESTINAL FUNCTION IN VITRO: CONTROLLING SIGNAL ACQUISITION, TISSUE COMPOSITION, OR THE PLATFORM Thesis Bitar, Khalil N Hall, Adam R Skardal, Aleksander Biomedical Engineering 2017-12-14 open.access