The Cell Engineering Group at the Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria (IDIVAL), led by Dr. Nazely Diban, has achieved a major breakthrough in the field of bioengineering by synthesizing the first transparent polymeric hollow fibers that allow real-time visualization of living cells cultured inside dynamic bioreactors.
The results of this research have been published in the Gold Open Access scientific journal View under the title “Breaking optical barriers: Transparent polymeric hollow fibers for biomedical applications.”
An Innovation That Breaks Optical Barriers
The study reports the reproducible synthesis of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) hollow fiber membranes with unprecedented optical transparency, obtained through the dry–wet jet spinning technique, without the use of additives.
The combination of the morphological properties achieved during the fabrication process and the intrinsic characteristics of the polymer has resulted in an optical transparency never before described in scientific literature.
Thanks to these new fibers, the team has developed a perfusion bioreactor prototype that enables direct, real-time, and non-invasive observation of living cells cultured within it. This advancement paves the way for faster, more accurate, and cost-effective biomedical research, with potential applications in microfluidics, bioengineering, and the development of vascularized 3D cellular models.
International Collaboration and Institutional Support
This research was the result of a multidisciplinary collaboration between IDIVAL, the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Cantabria, the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT) in Vienna, and the Hannover Medical School in Germany.
The project received funding from HFiberPlus (PDC2022-133704-I00), supported by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR funds, aimed at developing and validating advanced bioreactors for the generation of cellular vascular models.
Additionally, one of the IDIVAL-UC group researchers was awarded an EMBO–Scientific Exchange Grant (grant 10016), which enabled a three-month research stay at AIT to complete the functional validation of the fibers.
About the IDIVAL Cell Engineering Group
Recognized in 2023 as an emerging research group at IDIVAL, the Cell Engineering Group integrates Chemical Engineering, Medicine, and Cell Biology to design novel polymeric membrane materials and biomedical devices aimed at addressing critical health challenges.
Their research focuses on tissue engineering, the development of 3D in vitro cellular models for personalized medicine, and intensive cell culture, contributing to the advancement of translational biotechnology.
