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The Pull of Tissue Engineering: A STEM Outreach Program with a Modular Cyclic Stretch Device to Engage High School Students

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Abstract

In this paper we designed a STEM outreach program with a modular tissue engineering education tool (we refer to as “modular cyclic-stretch device”) to engage high school students in STEM hands-on activities. Using simple machines such as gears and rotating cams, students were able to build a custom device to apply cyclic stretch to biomaterials. With the help of this hands-on activity, our outreach program helped students grasp tendon tissue biomechanics and understand the importance of applying biomechanical force to regenerate tendon tissue in a laboratory setting. The two-day outreach program comprised: 1. pre- and post-tests; 2. lectures; 3. laboratory sessions, including the microscopic examination of stained tissue sections and a hands-on group activity employing the modular cyclic-stretch device; and 4. homework. Assessment results suggest that our program supports improved student awareness and interest in tissue engineering as a future profession. The program elevated students’ confidence in their ability to apply engineering principles to tasks such as building a modular cyclic-stretch device and measuring the mechanical properties of biological tissues. Building an educational bioreactor improved students’ understanding of the dynamic nature of the human body and the importance of tissue engineering as an emerging discipline towards replacing or regenerating damaged organs. We propose that our modular device has great outreach potential to introduce tissue engineering concepts to high school and potentially college freshmen engineering students.

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Acknowledgments

We sincerely thank Professor Isa Gokce for providing his laboratory space for our program and for his support in the certificate ceremony. We appreciate Brennan Cornell’s assistance in machining the cyclic stretch device parts. We also thank our enthusiastic undergraduate students Mukerrem Sima Uncu, Zeynep Binbas, Mirfet Haddat, Hanife Saha and Ismail Furkan Turan for volunteering for the program.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biomedical Engineering Program, Chemical and Biological Engineering Department, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, 501 E. Saint Joseph Street, Rapid City, SD, 57701, USA

    Tugba Ozdemir

  2. Department of Science Education, Tokat Gaziosmanpasa University, Tokat, Turkey

    Erdal Senocak

  3. Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, USA

    Gene Gerber & Justin L. Brown

  4. Department of Genetics and Bioengineering, Tokat Gaziosmanpasa University, Tokat, Turkey

    Secil Erden Tayhan

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  1. Tugba Ozdemir
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  2. Erdal Senocak
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  3. Gene Gerber
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  4. Secil Erden Tayhan
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  5. Justin L. Brown
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Correspondence to Tugba Ozdemir.

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Ozdemir, T., Senocak, E., Gerber, G. et al. The Pull of Tissue Engineering: A STEM Outreach Program with a Modular Cyclic Stretch Device to Engage High School Students. Biomed Eng Education 2, 31–39 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43683-021-00053-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s43683-021-00053-0

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