• sigmadot
• validation of new testing method

The present thesis is based on the validation of a new stimulation method, the sigmadot, used in a new bioreactor, the Mechanoculture TR, to characterize the biomaterials viscoelastic properties in real - time.
The first phase of the thesis was focused on the design and validation of the new testing method and on the study of the bioreactor, thanks to preliminary tests and a FEM model. Then, the work was focused on the production and characterization of liver ECM, as a substrate for the realization of pathophysiological 3D models, thanks to an enzymatic stiffening method. This method allows to obtain a cell-laden 3D gels with tunable stiffness, in order to mimic the progression of liver fibrosis, thus resulting in an ideal application for the new testing method developed in this thesis