Cotton candy gets a bad rap. The bright, sugary cloud is known for sending kids into hyperdrive and damaging teeth. Usually found at fairs or stadiums, cotton candy is now showing up in labs as a tool to help scientists build artificial blood vessels for lab‑grown organs.
From snack to science
The answer comes from Dr. Leon Bellan, a Vanderbilt University professor who develops 3D microfluidic materials for biomedical use. He and his students recently tackled a major challenge in tissue engineering: creating enough blood vessels to keep lab‑grown organs alive. The blog Inhabitat covered their work.
Scientists use 3D organoids, or “mini‑organs,” made from stem cells to model development and disease. Although organoid methods have improved, they still lack a working capillary system—the network that brings water, oxygen, and nutrients to cells. Without blood vessels, cells in the center of organoids die because they cannot access the nutrients available at the surface.
Bellan found a sweet solution. His team discovered that cotton candy can help create an artificial capillary system. The fibers of cotton candy are similar in size to human blood vessels. The team spins cotton candy strands, stabilizes them with a polymer, pours a gelatin mold over them, and lets it harden. They then dissolve the sugar with an enzyme solution. This leaves behind a complex network of channels that mimic human capillaries.
Early days
Once cleared of sugar, the artificial channels are ready to become functioning vessels. Bellan’s team grew human endothelial cells—the cells lining real blood vessels—inside the channels. These engineered vessels survived for more than a week.
The work is still early, but Bellan is excited about its potential for tissue engineering. In a video interview, he explained:
(Photo by Joe Howell)
“We’re really try to attack a fundamental hurdle for the entire field. The sci-fi version would be that you would like to be able to build an organ from scratch.”
Hopefully, Bellan and his group will be able to turn their sweet dream into a reality and help scientists develop properly functioning artificial organs that can be transplanted into humans.
To learn more about this fascinating technique, check out this video:
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