is both biodegradable and biocompatible. The scaffold is made from a series of thin layers, stamped with a pattern of channels that are each about 50 to 100 micrometres wide. The layers, which resemble computer microchips, are then stacked into a 3D structure of synthetic blood vessels and cross-linked using UV light. When the structure is finished, it is bathed in a liquid containing living cells, which quickly colonize the channels and begin growing just as they would in the human body. The work, which was published in Nature Materials, was produced collaboratively with researchers from across U of T, including Professor Michael Sefton (ChemE, IBBME), Professor Aaron Wheeler (Chemistry, IBBME) and their research teams, as well as researchers from Toronto General Hospital and University Health Network.
Improving Defibrillator Access to Save Lives U of T Engineering researchers have developed the first mathematical optimization approach to deploying automated external defibrillators (AEDs) that considers not only where the devices are located, but also when host buildings are open.
OCCAM Celebrates Official Opening The Ontario Centre for the Characterization of Advanced Materials (OCCAM) — a $20-million analytical laboratory at U of T Engineering — officially unveiled its latest capabilities in May 2016. Nearly 200 people attended the event, including faculty from across U of T as well as industry partners and representatives from the centre’s funders: the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation, and Hitachi High Technologies Canada. The facility is a joint initiative between the Departments of Materials Science & Engineering and Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry. It contains leading-edge equipment for imaging, analyzing and manipulating materials with nanometre-scale precision. Insights gained using these advanced facilities will help researchers understand the natural world and design better devices, from dental implants to microchips, solar cells, aircraft and much more. OCCAM is based on a collaborative model; each year, researchers from across U of T and external industry partners bring hundreds of samples to OCCAM for analysis.
Christopher Sun (EngSci 1T3 + PEY, MIE PhD candidate), working with Professor Timothy Chan (MIE), director of the Centre for Healthcare Engineering, and collaborators at the Rescu program at St. Michael’s Hospital, found that AED coverage diminished by more than eight per cent during the day, 28 per cent in the evening and 48 per cent at night, based on the opening hours of buildings where AEDs are placed. Many AEDs are located in office buildings, schools and recreation facilities, which are open for only a limited period each day. The placement of AEDs in buildings with limited hours can have an impact on survival for those who suffer cardiac arrests. Over a period of roughly eight years, 2,440 out-ofhospital cardiac arrests occurred in Toronto. Of those that occurred near an AED, approximately one in five occurred when an AED was inaccessible. Previous research had examined where AEDs are placed, but had largely overlooked time factors. The researchers found their new model provided the largest improvement in coverage during the night, when AED availability and survival are the lowest. The researchers hope their optimization model will help develop policies and guidelines for AED placements around the world, and ultimately save lives.
48 Chapter 3: Research | Annual Report 2016 | Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering