Universitat Politècnica de València

5 ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN JoVE

Bioengineering

Sandwich-like Microenvironments to Harness Cell/Material Interactions

José Ballester-Beltrán^1,2, Myriam Lebourg^1,3, Manuel Salmerón-Sánchez²

¹Center for Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de València, ²Division of Biomedical Engineering, School of Engineering, University of Glasgow, ³Biomedical Research Networking Center in Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN)

The following protocol describes the procedure to assemble sandwich-like cultures to be used as an intermediate stage between bi-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) cellular environments. The engineered systems can have applications in microscopy, biomechanics, biochemistry and cell biology assays.

Developmental Biology

Handling and Treatment of Male European Eels (Anguilla anguilla) for Hormonal Maturation and Sperm Cryopreservation

Juan G. Herranz-Jusdado¹, Eszter Kása², Tímea Kollár², Víctor Gallego¹, David S. Peñaranda¹, Christoffer Rozenfeld¹, Luz Pérez¹, Ákos Horváth², Juan F. Asturiano¹

¹Grupo de Acuicultura y Biodiversidad, Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología Animal, Universitat Politècnica de València, ²Department of Aquaculture, Institute of Aquaculture and Environmental Safety, Szent Istvan University

Protocols for European eel maturation and sperm cryopreservation have been improved over the last years. This article describes the best protocol available using human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) for inducing maturation and methanol as cryoprotectant.

Engineering

Design and Fabrication of an Optical Fiber Made of Water

Mark L. Douvidzon¹, Shai Maayani², Leopoldo L. Martin³, Tal Carmon⁴

¹Department of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Russell Berrie Nanotechnology Institute (RBNI), Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, ²Department of Material Sciences and Engineering, MIT, ³Centro de Tecnologia Nanofotónica, Universitat Politècnica de València, ⁴Department of Mechanical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology

This protocol describes the design and manufacture of a water bridge and its activation as a water fiber. The experiment demonstrates that capillary resonances of the water fiber modulate its optical transmission.

Environment

Forced Flowering in Mandarin Trees under Phytotron Conditions

Alfonso Garmendia¹, Roberto Beltrán², Carlos Zornoza³, Francisco J. García-Breijo², José Reig⁴, María Dolores Raigón⁵, Hugo Merle²

¹Instituto Agroforestal Mediterráneo, Universitat Politècnica de València, ²Departamento de Ecosistemas Agroforestales, Universitat Politècnica de València, ³S.A. Explotaciones Agrícolas Serrano (SAEAS), ⁴Instituto Cavanilles de Biodiversidad y Biología Evolutiva, Jardín Botánico Universitat de València, ⁵Instituto Universitario de Conservación y Mejora de la Agrodiversidad Valenciana, Universitat Politècnica de València

Here, we present a protocol to force flowering in mandarin trees under phytotron conditions. Water stress, high illuminance and a simulated spring photoperiod allowed viable flowers to be obtained in a short period of time. This methodology allows researchers to have several flowering periods in 1 year.

Bioengineering

Low-Dose Gamma Radiation Sterilization for Decellularized Tracheal Grafts

Néstor J. Martínez-Hernández¹, Lara Milián-Medina², Jorge Mas-Estellés³, José L. Monroy-Antón⁴, José L. López-Villalobos⁵, David Hervás-Marín⁶, Amparo Roig-Bataller¹, Manuel Mata-Roig^2,7,8

¹Thoracic Surgery Department, Hospital Universitari de la Ribera, ²Pathology Department, Universitat de Valencia Facultat de Medicina i Odontologia, ³Center for Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de València, ⁴Radiation Oncology, Hospital Universitari de la Ribera, ⁵Thoracic Surgery Department, Hospitales Universitarios Virgen del Rocío, ⁶Department of Applied Statistics and Operations Research and Quality, Universitat Politècnica de València, ⁷Networking Research Center on Respiratory Diseases (CIBERER), ⁸INCLIVA Biomedical Research Institute

Obtaining sterilization is essential for tracheal tissue transplant. Herein, we present a sterilization protocol using low-dose gamma irradiation that is fully tolerated by organs.