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AMME5971: Applied Tissue Engineering (2014 - Semester 1)

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Unit: AMME5971: Applied Tissue Engineering (6 CP)
Mode: Normal-Day
On Offer: Yes
Level: Postgraduate
Faculty/School: School of Aerospace, Mechanical & Mechatronic Engineering
Unit Coordinator/s: Professor Zreiqat, Hala
Session options: Semester 1
Versions for this Unit:
Campus: Camperdown/Darlington
Pre-Requisites: None.
Brief Handbook Description: Elective Unit of Study: With the severe worldwide shortage of donor organs and the ubiquitous problem of donor organ rejection, there is a strong need for developing technologies for engineering replacement organs and other body parts. Recent developments in biochemistry and cell biology have begun to make this possible, and as a consequence, the very new field of tissue engineering has been making dramatic progress in the last few years.

This UoS will provide an introduction to the principles of tissue engineering, as well as an up to date overview of recent progress in the field of tissue engineering is and where it is going. This UoS assumes prior knowledge of cell biology and chemistry and builds on that foundation to elaborate on the important aspects of tissue engineering. The objectives are:

1. To gain a basic understanding of the major areas of interest in tissue engineering

2. To learn to apply basic engineering principles to tissue engineering systems

3. To understand the challenges and difficulties of tissue engineering.

4. Understand the ethical issues of stem cell applications.

5. Practical classes in the preparation and evaluation of scaffolds for tissue regeneration.

6. Enable student to access web-based resources in tissue engineering (for example: Harvard-MIT Principles and Practice of Tissue Engineering).

7. Research basic skills in Tissue Engineering.
Assumed Knowledge: 6 credit points of junior biology,6 credit points of junior chemistry and 6 credit points of intermediate physiology or equivalent.
Additional Notes: The primary teaching delivery method will be lectures. This UoS builds on the assumed knowledge of junior and intermediate biology and thus students will already have practical hands-on biological training. The purpose of this UoS is to elaborate the theory and latest developments of this very new field of tissue engineering, thereby building on the existing practical and theoretical knowledge base the students have in cell biology.
Lecturer/s: Professor Zreiqat, Hala
Timetable: AMME5971 Timetable
Time Commitment:
# Activity Name Hours per Week Sessions per Week Weeks per Semester
1 Lecture 2.00 1 13
2 Tutorial 2.00 1 13

Attributes listed here represent the key course goals (see Course Map tab) designated for this unit. The list below describes how these attributes are developed through practice in the unit. See Learning Outcomes and Assessment tabs for details of how these attributes are assessed.

Attribute Development Method Attribute Developed
The students will be required to submit an assignment on a topic of their choice from one of the lectures. The students will be expected to identify a problem in the related field and discuss ways of providing tissue engineering solutions. Design (Level 3)
The students will be given lectures in specific areas of tissue engineering by leading experts in the their area of research. This will give the students a broad knowledge on the latest developments in Tissue Engineering. Engineering/IT Specialisation (Level 3)
Information literacy. This will be developed through the group project activities. Literature survey of the latest research in the area of tissue engineering Information Seeking (Level 3)
Communication. This will be developed through the scheduled seminars. Students will be divided into small groups and assigned a paper/project and then present and discuss their findings and outcomes with the whole class Communication (Level 3)
Experience through the group project tutorial program will provide training in team work, communication and presentation skills. Project and Team Skills (Level 3)

For explanation of attributes and levels see Engineering & IT Graduate Outcomes Table.

Learning outcomes are the key abilities and knowledge that will be assessed in this unit. They are listed according to the course goal supported by each. See Assessment Tab for details how each outcome is assessed.

Design (Level 3)
1. The students will each complete an individual assignment on the applications of tissue engineering to ophthalmology, dental, skeletal tissue, skin, neural, vascular and cardiology. In their assignment they will discuss the advances and future direction and identify key areas of shortcoming in the specific fields and discuss the general problem and possible solutions
Engineering/IT Specialisation (Level 3)
2. To develop a theoretical understanding of the basic concepts of tissue engineering and be exposed to the various specific disciplines of this field. The students will develop specific expertise through the lectures given by invited speakers at the forefront of their research.
Information Seeking (Level 3)
3. Students will gain expertise by conducting a scientific literature review of the current progress in the field of tissue engineering in general. Specifically, they will undertake a thorough scientific search on the latest development in the research conducted in their chosen assignment topic.
Communication (Level 3)
4. To achieve effective communications the class will be divided into small groups where each group will present their findings on their assigned project/paper for discussion with the whole class on their results, ideas and critically evaluate their scientific findings
Project and Team Skills (Level 3)
5. Team work skills will be developed by participating in group tutorial projects. Each group will then discuss the assigned paper/project in detail, decide on key points and then report back to the entire class
Assessment Methods:
# Name Group Weight Due Week Outcomes
1 Final Exam No 40.00 Exam Period 1, 2, 3,
2 Assignment No 40.00 Week 13 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,
3 Presentation/Seminar Yes 10.00 Multiple Weeks 2, 3, 4, 5,
4 Participation Yes 10.00 Multiple Weeks 2, 3, 4, 5,
Assessment Description: Final Exam: Final 2 hour open-book exam

Assignment: Assignment on a tissue engineering topic.

The assignment is due on Thursday week 13.
Grading:
Grade Type Description
Standards Based Assessment Final grades in this unit are awarded at levels of HD for High Distinction, DI (previously D) for Distinction, CR for Credit, PS (previously P) for Pass and FA (previously F) for Fail as defined by University of Sydney Assessment Policy. Details of the Assessment Policy are available on the Policies website at http://sydney.edu.au/policies . Standards for grades in individual assessment tasks and the summative method for obtaining a final mark in the unit will be set out in a marking guide supplied by the unit coordinator.
Policies & Procedures: See the policies page of the faculty website at http://sydney.edu.au/engineering/student-policies/ for information regarding university policies and local provisions and procedures within the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technologies.

Note that the "Weeks" referred to in this Schedule are those of the official university semester calendar https://web.timetable.usyd.edu.au/calendar.jsp

Week Description
Week 1 Overview of Tissue Engineering
Week 2 ISLET TRANSPLANTATION AND DENDRITIC CELL , for renal transplantation
Week 3 Engineering stem cells: from niche to clinic
Week 4 STEM CELLS: Future Therapeutic Prospects of Adult Stem Cells
Week 5 Regenerative Whole Organ Engineering
Week 6 Stem Cell Biology & Regenerative Medicine: Everything you've always wanted to know and was afraid to ask
Week 7 Extracellular matrix-Cartilage and Tendon regeneration
Week 8 Intravascular Scaffolding Using Coronary Stents. Past, Present, Future
Week 9 Embryonic stem cells
Week 10 Building bone with biologics
Week 11 Dental implants pros and cons-need for bone regeneration in dentistry
Week 12 Building bone with Synthetic Materials
Week 13 Biomedical engineers and their practical approach to novel engineered synthetic bio-substitutes
Assessment Due: Assignment
Exam Period Assessment Due: Final Exam

Course Relations

The following is a list of courses which have added this Unit to their structure.

Course Year(s) Offered
Master of Professional Engineering (Biomedical) 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
Master of Engineering (2024 and earlier) 2013, 2014

Course Goals

This unit contributes to the achievement of the following course goals:

Attribute Practiced Assessed
Design (Level 3) Yes 21.33%
Engineering/IT Specialisation (Level 3) Yes 26.33%
Information Seeking (Level 3) Yes 26.33%
Communication (Level 3) Yes 13%
Professional Conduct (Level 2) No 0%
Project and Team Skills (Level 3) Yes 13%

These goals are selected from Engineering & IT Graduate Outcomes Table which defines overall goals for courses where this unit is primarily offered. See Engineering & IT Graduate Outcomes Table for details of the attributes and levels to be developed in the course as a whole. Percentage figures alongside each course goal provide a rough indication of their relative weighting in assessment for this unit. Note that not all goals are necessarily part of assessment. Some may be more about practice activity. See Learning outcomes for details of what is assessed in relation to each goal and Assessment for details of how the outcome is assessed. See Attributes for details of practice provided for each goal.