Abstract
In summary, microfluidic-BioMEMS platforms are increasingly contributing to tissue engineering in many different ways. First, the accurate control of the cell environment in settings suitable for cell screening and with imaging compatibility is greatly advancing our ability to optimize cell sources for a variety of tissue-engineering applications. Second, the microfluidic technology is ideal for the formation of perfusable networks, either to study their stability and maturation or to use these networks as templates for engineering vascularized tissues. Third, the approaches based on microfluidic and BioMEMS devices enable engineering and the study of minimally functional modules of complex tissues, such as liver sinusoid, kidney nephron, and lung bronchiole. This brief article highlighted some of the unique advantages of this elegant technology using representative examples of tissue-engineering research. We focused on some of the universal needs of the area of tissue engineering: tissue vascularization, faithful recapitulation in vitro of functional units of our tissues and organs, and predictable selection and differentiation of stem cells that are being addressed using the power and versatility of microfluidic-BioMEMS platforms.